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SHE LOOKED STRAIGHT INTO A PAIR OF FRIGHTENED EYES.” 

(See page 234 .) 




pb^lltg* jfiel& jfrtenfrg 

STORIES OF 

BIG ANIMALS 




.. 


BY 

LENORE ELIZABETH MULETS 

Author of “ Bird Stories,” “ Flower Stories,” “Stories 
of Little Animals,” etc. 


Illustrated by 

CHARLES LIVINGSTON BULL, 
FRANK VINING SMITH, 

ND 

JOHN GOSS 


Come forth into the light of things, 
Let Nature be your teacher.” 

Wordsworth. 



BOSTON rn L. C. PAGE & 
COMPANY MDCCCCXIII 


3 


Copyright , 1913 , by 
L. C. Page & Company 
(incorporated) 

All rights reserved 


First Impression, July, 1913 


THE COLONIAL PRESS 
C. H. SIMONDS & CO., BOSTON. U. S, A 



©CI.A350558 


f 


CONTENTS 


The Wolf Family 

PAGE 

Prairie Voices . 

3 

How the Coyote Got His Cunning 

. . 16 

How the Coyote Helped Man 

The Coyote’s Relatives 

. . 25 

. . 30 

All About the Wolf 

. 42 

The Bear Family 

Grizzly 

. . 47 

The Hunter’s Return .... 

. . 49 

The Bear and the Birds 

. 56 

The Black Bear Story .... 

. . 64 

Manabush and the Bears 

. . 72 

In Snowy Homes 

. 81 

All About the Bear .... 

. . 88 

The Cat Family 

The Mountain Lion’s Story 

. . 93 

Lily and the Lion 

. 100 

The Captain’s Lion Story . 

. . 115 

A Tiger Tale 

. 124 

All About the Cat Family . 

. . 134 

The Elephant 

The Elephant 

. . 139 

The Elephant’s Escape 

. 153 

All About the Elephant 

. . 161 

vii 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 


viii 

The Camel 

The Ship of the Desert 165 

The Arab and His Camel 177 

All About the Camel 180 

The Beaver 

The Toilers 185 

The Beaver Settlement 198 

All About the Beaver 211 

The Bison 

The Bison 217 

All About the Bison 229 

The Deer Family 

A Chance Meeting 233 

The Eastern Deer 243 

Hunting the Deer 253 

The Chase 262 

In Yellowstone Park 266 

How the Deer Got His Antlers . . . .274 

Why the Deer’s Teeth Are Blunt . . . 280 

The Moose 286 

All About the Deer Family .... 294 


LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 


“ She looked straight into a pair of fright- 
ened eyes ” (see page 234) Frontispiece 
“ ‘ The tales were all too true of the fierce, 

hungry wolves 9 99 . . . . 30 

“ ‘ When her cubs are young the mother 

is cross and ugly 9 99 . . . . 65 

“ ' The mountain lion is not a pleasant 

fellow to meet 9 99 . . . . 97 

“ ‘ It is greatly on account of this that the 

tigers become so fearless and bold ’ ” 130 

“ ‘ They gnaw and cut and drag to the 

selected spot ’ 99 204 

“ ‘ At the first scent of danger the deer 

is up and away like the wind itself 9 9 9 2 46 

u ‘ The moose is a decidedly ugly, awk- 
ward-looking animal 9 99 . . . 289 



THE WOLF FAMILY 


THE WOLF FAMILY 

PRAIRIE VOICES 

It was the summer when Phyllis was twelve 
years old that the family decided on a trip to 
the Rocky Mountains. 

“ What could be better? ” urged her father, 
even after it was all decided. “ There will be 
the beautiful mountain views and the deli- 
cious mountain air and — ” 

“ And the wild mountain bears, just growl- 
ing because they haven ’t been shot at,” 
laughed Jack. 

“ And the jack-rabbits and the prairie-dogs 

just waiting for us to come,” went on Phyllis. 

3 


4 


THE WOLF FAMILY 


“ And the mountain-trout/’ put in mamma 
slyly. 

The laugh which followed was on papa, for 
he had lived most of his young life in the 
West, and he had never quite recovered from 
a longing for the plains and the snow-capped 
Rockies. Hour after hour the two children 
had sat and listened to the stories of their 
father’s boyhood and his prowess in the wilds 
that his youth knew. 

It was on the first day of July that the 
family found their sections in the Pullman 
and settled themselves in their comfortable 
quarters for the trip. They were to be car- 
ried without change from their home near the 
Atlantic Ocean across prairies and plains, 
along the margin of great lakes and across 
mighty rivers, to the heart of the snow-capped 
Rockies gleaming sunward and skyward ever. 


PRAIRIE VOICES 


5 


To the children, who had lived among the 
lovely tree-clad hills of New England all their 
lives, the broad, flat plains of the Mississippi 
Valley looked very strange. 

Hour after hour they sat and stared out of 
the car window and saw just seemingly end- 
less acres of corn, wheat and oats. 

In the midst of the grain-fields sat the farm- 
houses, usually painted white and surrounded 
by clumps of trees, and guarded always by 
one or a number of enormous barns several 
times as large as the house. 

In every farm-yard a tall windmill lifted its 
trig fans to the stiff breezes and sturdily 
pumped water for men and farm animals. 

Very different are these trim, well-painted, 
well oiled western windmills, whirling so mer- 
rily in the prairie winds, from the great old 
clumsy picturesque windmills that have 


6 


THE WOLF FAMILY 


guarded Holland from the sea for so many, 
many years. 

After several days on the fast-moving 
trains the grain-fields and the farm-houses 
were seen no more, but from the windows 
stretched miles and miles of grass-grown 
prairies with now and then a great herd of 
cattle or sheep grazing on them. They 
caught glimpses of cunning prairie-dogs or 
nimble gophers scudding for their home 
“ dugouts ” at the approach of the train. 

“ Look, papa! ” cried Phyllis one day. 
“ What is that animal? It looks like a dog, 
and yet it is not one.” 

“ It looks like a wolf, but it is too small,” 
said Jack. 

Papa laughed softly. He was enjoying the 
journey as much as they. 

“ It is a wolf, my boy,” said he. “ A 


PRAIRIE VOICES 


7 


prairie wolf or coyote; there are still many 
of them in these prairies of the far West, al- 
though they are passing like the bison and 
the Indian. They are important neither as 
enemies nor as food or they would long since 
have been destroyed. 

“ On clear, quiet nights one may still hear 
the sharp, short bark of the coyote on the 
prairies. 

“ When I was a boy,” papa went on, gazing 
into the distance as though dreaming, “ I 
lived in western Nebraska. Look it up on 
your map and see just where Nebraska is 
located. 

“We lived in a farm-house on one of the 
hilly bluffs along the Platte River, a large 
tributary of the Missouri River. Find that, 
too, on your maps. 

“ On all sides were the prairies covered 


8 


THE WOLE FAMILY 


with wild grass standing well above my ten- 
year-old head. Beside the river grew a few 
trees and a thick tangle of underbrush. The 
small streams likewise were fringed with low 
hazel and sumac bushes. Other than these 
there were no trees. 

“ I well remember how, on those still, 
starry nights, no sound was heard, save the 
night winds whispering among the grasses 
and the occasional short, sharp bark of the 
coyote in the distance. 

“ When we boys heard those barks we 
huddled together and frightened ourselves* by 
telling most horrible wolf stories, which we 
had read or imagined. As a little chap I came 
to be afraid of the dark, because out of it 
came those wolf voices. 

“ At last there came an evening when I 
was sent on an errand to a neighboring farm. 


PRAIRIE VOICES 


9 


I had plenty of time to return before dark but 
I stopped to play with the neighbor’s boys 
until dusk came on. Before I was half way 
home it was quite dark. 

“ From the north along the river rose 
the coyotes’ voices. My teeth chattered 
with fear and I dared not sob aloud as I 
ran for home as fast as my legs would carry 
me. 

“ At a turn in the path I stopped for an 
instant to catch my breath and listen. From 
the deep ravine just behind me came the bark 
of a coyote. I ran, frantic with fright, until 
I stumbled and fell. 

“ Before I could scramble up I heard the 
answering bark of a coyote on the grassy 
slope to my right. 

“ I 'never quite remember how, but some- 
how, I got to my feet. It was a hatless, breath- 


10 


THE WOLF FAMILY 


less boy who burst into the house a few mo- 
ments later. 

“ 6 Why, my child! ’ exclaimed my mother, 
‘ what has happened? 9 

“ There in my mother’s arms I felt safe 
once more. I listened. I still could hear the 
barks of the coyotes on all sides, as they called 
and answered one another. I had heard it so 
a hundred times before. 

“ To mother I told the story of my fright 
and flight through the dark. She did not 
laugh, but she told me there was not the 
slightest cause for fear. 

“ 4 Those coyotes would be very glad to 
catch a jack-rabbit or a ground-squirrel or a 
nice, fat prairie-dog,’ said mother, giving 
me a squeeze, ‘ but from a great ten-year- 
old boy like you they would run away and 
hide.’ 


PRAIRIE VOICES 


11 


“ ‘ But the boys told dreadful wolf stories/ 
I said in excuse. 

“ ‘ Oh, but the coyotes, or prairie-wolves, 
are very different creatures from that dread- 
ful wolf which ate Red Riding Hood/ laughed 
mother. 

“ ‘ The coyotes are very cunning and greedy 
but they are not the slightest bit fierce. In 
fact, they are cowardly creatures. 

u 6 They sometimes venture quite near the 
barn-yard in search of chickens or young pigs 
but at sight of any one they slink quickly 
away. Do not ever let a coyote frighten you 
again.’ ” 

“ It was but a few days later that my father 
and I were driving across a field of grass. 

“ 1 Look! ’ said my father, pointing with his 
whip. 

“ I saw a lean yellowish-grey creature trot- 


12 


THE WOLF FAMILY 


ting hurriedly away. It was about the size of 
our shepherd dog. The under part of the body 
was whitish. The tail was tipped with black. 

“ ‘ Is it a coyote? ’ 1 asked. 

“ Father nodded. 

<n He had a rabbit in his mouth/ said 
father. i His den must be near. He is prob- 
ably carrying the rabbit to his mate.’ 

“ One day, a week later, my father called 
to me as he drove in from the fields. In 
his arms was a pretty little creature with 
a puppy face and a woolly ‘ wobbly 9 body 
and legs. 

“ I snatched it from him, for I was wild 
with delight to have a puppy of my own. 
Imagine my surprise when my ‘ puppy 9 did 
not move. When I shook it it did not open 
its eyes. 

“ ‘ Oh, it’s dead! ’ I cried. Father laughed. 


PRAIRIE VOICES 


13 


“ 1 It is “playing possum,’ ” said father. 
‘ It is a common trick of coyotes.’ 

“ It was then that I knew I had not a baby 
dog but a baby coyote. Father had found the 
den and shot the old ones, because they were 
a continual nuisance to farmers. The skins 
brought a very good price at the store where 
he bought our provisions. 

“ In time the coyote puppy became ac- 
quainted. I will not say that it ever became 
quite tame. 

“ It would squeal and growl and bark when 
we played with it. It was not a very trust- 
worthy pet, for it had a bad habit of snapping 
and biting. 

“ As it became older it grew more restless. 
It came to be a nuisance at last. After sunset 
it began its barking cry. One coyote after 
another, all over the country, took up the cry. 


14 


THE WOLF FAMILY 


“ ‘ Wow - wow - wow - wo - ow - 00 - 00 - 
ooh - wow! ’ barked my coyote hour in and 
hour out, and — 

“ ‘ Wow - wow - wow - wo - ow - oo - oo - 
ooh - wow!’ answered relatives and friends for 
miles around. 

“ 4 That coyote will have to be killed,’ said 
my father impatiently one evening when he 
was more than usually annoyed by the night 
concert. 

u But the very next morning my pet was 
missing. It had gnawed its rope in two and 
gone to join its kind. 

“ 1 He will starve,’ I cried. ‘ He never had 
enough to eat and we fed him all the time. 
He’ll starve! ’ 

“ ‘ No,’ said father. ‘ He will not starve. 
A coyote is a born hunter. 

“ c He will go out into the prairie and learn 


PRAIRIE VOICES 


15 


to shift for himself. If he becomes ill he will 
know how to doctor himself by eating grasses 
and herbs. 

“ ‘ By and by he will choose a mate. They 
will find a den in some sheltered cave. Later 
there will be four or five shapeless, wriggling 
coyote puppies in the den. 

“ * While they are very small the mother 
will hardly leave the den for food. The father 
will hunt as usual and will bring home food 
for the mother. 

“ 6 When the puppies have their eyes open 
and can eat animal food the parents will teach 
them to hunt.’ ” 

“ And did you never see your pet again? ” 
Phyllis asked. 

“ No, but I heard him many times,” 
laughed her father. “ I shall never forget his 
dismal 6 Yap - yap - yow - wow - ooo - ooh.’ ” 


HOW THE COYOTE GOT HIS CUNNING 1 

“ Long ages ago there were no men upon 
the earth/’ say the Indian fathers to their 
children. 

“ A story! A story! ” clamor the Indian 
boys, coming closer to the campfires and 
drawing their blankets snugly about them. 

“ The Great Spirit was ever wise,” the 
Indian storyteller goes on. “ He was ever 
thoughtful for the needs and the happiness of 
his children. 

“ So it was that in the beginning he made 
the fishes of all kinds and placed them in the 
waters of the earth. 

1 Adapted from Ethnological Bureau Report. 

16 


THE COYOTE’S CUNNING 


17 


“ Again, he made the animals of all kinds 
and placed them in the forests and on the 
prairies of the land. Before this there were 
no bears or wolves or bulfalo or bison. There 
were no squirrels or moles or gophers or 
prairie-dogs. There were no wild deer with 
beautiful tree-like antlers; no mountain lion 
with their catlike ways. 

“ When the Great Spirit had made all 
these, He looked at the earth and the fruit of 
His work and was well pleased. 

“ 6 It is as it should be,’ said He. ‘ And 
now the earth is fit to become the home of my 
children. The beasts and the plants shall 
serve them. 

“ 6 Some beasts shall give them steaks and 
venison. Others shall give milk for their 
children to drink, and skins to cover their 
wigwams and to clothe them. Still others 


18 


THE WOLF FAMILY 


shall draw their goods or carry them swiftly 
and safely across the long trails.’ 

“ So it was that finally, after all the earth 
was fitted for him and perfect, the Great 
Spirit made man. He was the most marvel- 
ous of all the work of His hands. 

“ Man was not so strong as the great brown 
bear, yet by the cunning of his greater mind 
he fashioned arrows so cleverly that he 
brought the flesh of the great brown bear to 
his wigwam for food, and the skin to clothe 
his children. 

“ He was not so tall as the deer and moose 
with branching antlers, yet by the cleverness 
of his traps he brought them home through 
the forest for his uses. 

“ He was not so swift nor so tireless as the 
wild pony of the plains yet with his skill and 
wisdom he taught the wild pony to serve him. 


THE COYOTE’S CUNNING 


19 


“ Thus it was that all living creatures came 
to respect man. They knew that he was wise 
beyond their understanding. 

“ At length the Great Spirit commanded 
that man assemble all the animals of the 
earth and give to each his rank in the animal 
world. 

“ This should be decided by gifts of bows 
and arrows. That animal which received the 
longest bow should be most powerful. That 
animal which received the shortest bow 
should have least power in the animal world. 

“ Thus man, guided by the wisdom of the 
Great Spirit, called the animals together and 
told them of the commands of the Great 
Spirit. In the morning, he said, he would 
distribute the bows and arrows, each accord- 
ing to his orders. 

u And the birds tucked their heads under 


20 


THE WOLF FAMILY 


their wings and slept. The fishes huddled 
their scaly sides together and floated motion- 
less. Every animal after the fashion of his 
kind rested and waited for the next day. 

“ Did I say all? No, there was one who 
slept not at all, but was restless and dis- 
turbed. It was the coyote. He looked long 
and often on the great heap of bows and ar- 
rows to be distributed on the morrow. 

“ On the very top of the heap lay the long- 
est bow, and close beside the heap, with his 
hand resting on it, lay man. 

“ 4 Ah,’ thought the coyote, 6 to him who 
comes first in the morning man will give the 
longest bow. It is but right that the first to 
come should have the first choice. And he 
who gets the longest bow will be most power- 
ful.’ 

“ The coyote chuckled in a low, barking 


THE COYOTE’S CUNNING 


21 


tone to himself. His lean sides shook with 
merriment when he thought of his own cun- 
ning. 

“ ‘ I shall stay awake all night,’ he said. 
‘ Then, surely, I will be the first to greet man 
in the morning.’ 

“ So all night long, while the other crea- 
tures slept, the coyote remained awake and 
prowled about slyly that he might not awaken 
the others. 

“ As the night wore on the coyote’s eyes 
were heavy for sleep. He put forth all his 
effort to remain awake. He was scarcely still 
for an instant but trotted constantly to and 
fro. He barked, too, but very softly so as not 
to waken his companions. 

“ ‘ Surely I shall be most prompt, and 
therefore the most powerful of the beasts of 
the earth,’ said he to himself, when the first 


22 


THE WOLF FAMILY 


pink shafts of dawn flamed up in the eastern 
sky. Musing, he lay down for a moment just 
to rest his legs, which were so weary after the 
long night’s vigil. 

“ Oh, alas, alas! Scarcely did he touch the 
earth before he was fast asleep. From sheer 
weariness he slept on and on, while the sun 
rose and the other animals with low sounds 
awoke, and the choice began. 

“ Directed by the Great Spirit, man kept 
the longest bow for himself, and to the other 
animals he gave those remaining, and when 
he was through only one little short bow re- 
mained. 

“ Each creature as he received his gift 
bowed himself from the presence of man and 
returned to his native home in field or forest 
or stream. And the coyote, so weary, still 
slept. 


THE COYOTE’S CUNNING 


23 


“ The sun rose higher and higher. He 
drank up the night dews. He put the 
night winds to rest. The coyote still 
slept. 

“ When it was nearly noon the coyote 
stretched, yawned, opened his eyes and sud- 
denly sprang to his feet. 

“ He gave one long sad howl of disappoint- 
ment and rage. Man held out to him the very 
shortest of the arrows. It was the only one 
left. Howl after howl echoed across the 
prairie as he trotted away. 

“ And the Great Spirit, who is ever kind, 
pitied the coyote. Greatest power was al- 
ready given with the longest bow, but to the 
coyote was given cunning ten times greater 
than before. He was sharp of wits and wily 
above all other of the animals. When you see 
the coyote remember his story. 


24 


THE WOLF FAMILY 


“ Some day,” continued the Indian father, 
as the smoke from his pipe wavered heaven- 
ward slowly, “ you shall hear how the coyote 
helped man.” 


HOW THE COYOTE HELPED MAN 1 


The Indians have many marvelous stories 
which are meant to account for the beginning 
of things. The following is one of them: 

“ Long, long ago there were no fish in the 
great river,’ ’ say the Kacook Indians. “ Many 
were the salmon in the ocean, but the ocean 
was far away. It was then that we came near 
to starvation.” 

“ But why did the salmon not swim up the 
river even as they do now? ” asked the Ka- 
cook children. 

“ Ah, they could not. When the Great 
Spirit made the salmon He put them into the 
waters of the ocean. 

1 Adapted from Ethnological Bureau Report. 

25 


26 


THE WOLF FAMILY 


“ Again and again did the shining fishes 
swim up to the mouth of the river but each 
time they turned their spotted sides and 
swam back to the ocean. 

“ ‘ What can be the meaning of this? 9 the 
Indians inquired of each other. But the 
wisest shook his head. 

“ For a long time no one could understand 
why the fish swam up to the river’s mouth 
but never entered. After much watching 
they found that a great net was stretched 
across the river and no fish could get beyond 
the net. 

“ It was not like other nets, for it was locked 
in place with a key. It was discovered that 
the key was kept by two old women, who lived 
in a rude wigwam beside the mouth of the 
river. 

“ The old women never ceased their watch- 


HOW THE COYOTE HELPED 27 


mg even to sleep. They did not let the key 
out of their hands for an instant. 

“ Now, you will remember how, in the be- 
ginning, the Great Spirit gave the coyote cun- 
ning greater than that of any other crea- 
ture. 

“ When the coyote saw the plight of the 
Indians he was very sorry. He restlessly 
roamed through the tall prairie grasses think- 
ing, thinking, thinking. 

“ How could he get that key and let 
the fish come up the river? The In- 
dians were nearly starving and help must 
come soon. 

“ At length he went to the wigwam of the 
two old women. They were lonely and in- 
vited him in to talk with them. They remem- 
bered their trust but they thought just a 
prairie coyote could do them no harm. 


28 


THE WOLE FAMILY 


“ The coyote remained all night in the 
wigwam waiting and slyly watching his 
chance to get the key. But the old women 
did not sleep. Neither did they lay the 
key down for a single instant. The coyote 
began to think that his errand would 
fail. 

“ Just as the sun rose one old woman took 
the key and started out to get the salmon for 
breakfast. Quick as thought, the coyote 
sprang up. He darted under the old woman 
and threw her off her feet. 

“ As the woman fell, the key was flung 
from her hand. It fell several yards away. 
She was old, and, before she could scramble 
up, the coyote caught the key and raced to 
the lock in the net. 

“It was in this way that the coyote opened 
the river’s mouth and allowed the salmon to 


HOW THE COYOTE HELPED 29 


go up the river as the Great Spirit had in- 
tended/ ’ 

Ever after, as the Indians ate in plenty, 
they told their children this story of the cun- 
ning of the coyote. 


THE COYOTE'S RELATIVES 

“ But," said Phyllis, as another coyote 
slunk out of sight amid the prairie grasses, 
“ what has become of the wolf that ate Red 
Riding Hood? Where are the wolves about 
whom all these terrible tales are told? " 

“ In early times," her father replied, 
“ when this country was almost a wilderness, 
the tales were all too true of the fierce hungry 
wolves. There were stories too horrible to 
tell. But now the wolves are very nearly 
driven out of all parts of the United States. 

“ When the country was first settled the 

dreaded grey wolf roamed over all parts of 

our country. They hunted in packs, or 
30 



“ ‘ THE TALES WERE 


ALL TOO TRUE 


OF THE FIERCE, HUNGRY 


WOLVES 


) 




THE COYOTE’S RELATIVES 31 


crowds, and when driven by hunger did not 
hesitate to attack even armed men. 

“ These wolves are found even now once in 
a while in lonely districts west of the Missis- 
sippi but not in numbers large enough to 
cause any alarm. 

“ It is this same grey wolf which still roams 
the wild mountain country of Russia, Ger- 
many and parts of France. 

“ When there comes a very cold, hard win- 
ter and there is difficulty in procuring other 
animal food they are even now known 
to attack people. The peasants in those 
countries still live in continual fear of 
them. 

“ This wolf is perhaps not of quite the same 
shade in all countries; but it is always grey, 
either light or dark, and always darkest along 
the back. The back is indeed often so dark 


32 THE WOLE FAMILY 

that it looks black. There are also dark 
patches on shoulders and hips. 

“ The grey wolf is also called the timber 
wolf, because it usually makes its home in 
forest regions. It is much larger than the 
prairie wolf, measuring sometimes more than 
four feet in height. 

“ Grey wolves, indeed all wolves, are rest- 
less unquiet beasts. Especially during the 
winter months do they wander up and down 
the country in great packs, or, once in a while, 
alone or in twos. 

“ Wolves are very numerous even now in 
Russia. In very severe winters they are so 
bold that they cause a great deal of trouble 
to farmers by stealing up and catching the 
farm animals. 

“ Wolf hunting is one of the sports of 
Russia. It is a duty as well as a sport, for if 


THE COYOTE’S RELATIVES 33 


something were not done to frighten and 
destroy these animals they would cause even 
more harm than now.” 

“ I should think every one there would 
carry a gun,” said Jack. “ Tell us about the 
wolf hunting.” 

“ They are not always killed with guns,” 
replied his father. “ The peasants have a 
way of spying out the hiding places of the 
wolves. These places they quietly surround 
with heavy nets. All this is done in the day- 
time when the beasts are asleep, for wolves 
usually hunt by night. 

“ When the nets are all secure the sport 
begins. Boys, girls, men and women are 
there. They shout, they beat drums, they 
blow whistles, they bang on tin pans and make 
the most dreadful din you can imagine. 

“ The wolves spring from their sleep half 


34 


THE WOLE FAMILY 


dazed and in great fright, unable to under- 
stand what is happening. They run in every 
direction for safety but on all sides they find 
this strong net through which they can in no 
way break. 

“ In their frightened struggle the wolves 
become more and more entangled in the 
meshes of the net. Then the peasants have 
them at their mercy. The wolves are shot or 
speared or even clubbed to death with axes 
or heavy cudgels.” 

“ That seems a cruel way to hunt,” said 
Phyllis. 

“ They are cruel animals,” replied her 
father. 

“ You said there were several ways which 
Russians use in wolf hunting,” suggested 
Jack, after a little pause. 

“ Yes, the wealthy Russians make even 


THE COYOTE’S RELATIVES 35 


more of a sport of it,” said his father. “ They 
use neither guns nor spears nor clubs nor any 
other weapon.” 

“ But how? ” cried Phyllis, with wide-open 
eyes. 

“ With dogs.” And now Jack grew more 
excited than Phyllis. 

“ They are no ordinary dogs, but hounds 
bred especially for wolf hunting. They are 
marvelously strong and perfectly trained for 
the sport. 

“ A wealthy Russian considers no price too 
great to pay for a good wolf hound. A fine 
hunter has been sold for as much as seventy- 
five hundred dollars in our money. 

“ Wolf hounds are very swift runners, and 
the hunters instead of catching the wolves 
napping as the peasants do, like better to 
rouse them and follow in the chase. 


36 


THE WOLF FAMILY 


“ Now, the wolf is well known as a swift 
and tireless runner, but these wolf hounds can 
not only run a wolf down but, when overtaken, 
can seize and hold him however fierce he 
proves. 

“ If you could see the strength of the grey 
wolf and his snapping jaws you would better 
understand how wonderful it is that a hound 
can hold him so securely without hurting or 
being hurt by him. 

“ When the hunters come up they muzzle 
the wolf and drag it away to the great iron 
cage on wheels, which is brought along for 
that purpose. 

“ The wolf hounds are grey-brown in color 
or sometimes black and white, about four feet 
high and very fierce looking. The finest pack 
of wolf hounds in Russia belongs to the Czar. 
It consists of about fifty dogs.” 


THE COYOTE’S RELATIVES 37 


“ How I should like it! ” cried Jack. 

But Phyllis shivered a little. 

“ I am glad they are so well driven out of 
our country,” said she. “ Do you think we’ll 
meet any in the Rockies, papa? ” 

“ Wolves seem suited to almost any coun- 
try where they can find something to eat,” 
laughed her father, “ but I fancy we shall be 
quite safe. 

“ Whatever wolves there are in the Rocky 
Mountains are quite satisfied with the wild 
game they find, and keep well to their own 
haunts when human creatures are about. 

“ In fact, to find any great number of 
wolves in our country one would need go to 
the scarcely settled region about the Hudson 
Bay. There the grey wolf still is plentiful. 

“ Still further north in the colder regions 
lives the Arctic wolf. Its coat is pure white 


38 


THE WOLF FAMILY 


with just a tip of black at the end of its 
tail. 

“ There is, too, the black wolf, which is still 
found in the swampy lands of Florida. 

“ Wolves in all countries, and of all kinds, 
are very much alike in habits however much 
they may differ in appearance. 

“ They hunt in packs, running down their 
prey rather than using any cunning in its 
capture. They belong to the dog family and 
have been known to adopt a dog among them 
as one of their pack. 

“ It is during the summer that the wolves 
separate in pairs and live in dens dug by 
themselves or sometimes in caves. 

“ The mother wolf cares for the young 
while the father hunts and brings home food 
for the family. 

“ As soon as the young ones are old enough 


THE COYOTE’S RELATIVES 39 


to look out for themselves the family again 
joins the pack.” 

“ The Indians must have found great sport 
in wolf hunting when this country was a wil- 
derness,” said Jack. 

“ Perhaps, in some tribes,” said his father. 
“ But I have read that among the Cherokee 
Indians very few wolves were killed. The or- 
dinary Cherokee would not kill a wolf unless 
it were to save his own life, for he believed 
that the wolf had a mysterious power. 

“ He thought that whatever weapon, 
whether tomahawk or war club, that was 
used against a wolf would never again be of 
any use to the owner. Not only would the 
weapon be useless but it would bring ill luck. 

“ He also believed that if an Indian killed 
a wolf none of the wolf’s family would rest 
until they had made sure of revenge by bring- 


40 


THE WOLF FAMILY 


ing about the death of the hunter who slew 
him.” 

“ But if the Indians did not kill the wolves 
why did they not become bold and dangerous 
as you said they would in Russia if not 
hunted? ” asked Phyllis. 

“ Because,” laughed her father, “ there 
were certain very powerful warriors on whom 
this charm had no effect. These were hired 
to kill wolves when they became inclined to 
be troublesome.” 

“I’m glad they arranged it in some way,” 
said Phyllis, and Jack laughed. 

“ I once heard the Eskimos ’ story of the 
first wolf,” said Jack. 

“ Tell us,” demanded Phyllis. 

“ The wolf was once a poor old woman. 
She was left alone with a large family of chil- 
dren for whom she could not find food. 


THE COYOTE’S RELATIVES 41 

“ Day and night she watched and hunted. 
Day by day she became more gaunt and thin 
for whatever little food she found was given 
to the children. 

“ She roamed the woods and the plains 
seeking and seeking for food, and ever as she 
hunted she sent back a cry to her children to 
keep up their courage. 

“ Gradually through their strange way of 
living a change came over the family. To this 
day the Eskimos say it is the old woman and 
her family that run gaunt, thin and howling 
over the Arctic snows seeking for food.” 

“ Thank you, Jackie,” said Phyllis, who 
had listened to every word, but when they 
looked at their father he was fast asleep. 
They laughed slyly to themselves and sat very 
still, looking out of the car windows. 


ALL ABOUT THE WOLF 


SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY 

Coyote.— In general appearance like small 
wolf— yellowish grey in color— under parts 
white— tail black-tipped. 

Nature — sly, cunning, greedy but never 
fierce — hunt in packs at night — howl and 
bark continuously as they run. 

Homes — burrows dug for themselves — or 
prairie-dogs’ homes taken into possession. 

Food— chiefly animal— rabbits, birds, field 
mice, etc.,— when hard pressed by hunger may 
adopt vegetable diet — berries, prickly pears 
and the like. 

Grey or Timber Wolf. — Fur grey— 
darker on back and patches on hips and 

42 


ALL ABOUT THE WOLF 


43 


shoulders. — Found in Europe and North 
America — driven from our country now ex- 
cept in Hudson Bay region and some parts 
of the Rocky Mountains.— Habits wandering 
— unsettled. 

Black Wolf .—Very much darker than grey 
wolf — black or nearly black. Fierce — home 
in swampy lands of Florida. 

White or Arctic Wolf .— Pure white, as are 
so many polar animals — found in northern 
North America. 

Home habits of entire wolf family practi- 
cally the same. 




THE BEAR FAMILY 


- ..tf 



















THE BEAR FAMILY 


GRIZZLY 1 

Savage — whose relentless tusks 
Are content with acorn husks; 

Bobber — whose exploits ne’er soared 
O’er the bee’s or squirrel’s hoard; 
Whiskered chin and feeble nose, 

Claws of steel on baby toes, — 

Here in solitude and shade, 

Shambling, shuffling plantigrade, 

Be thy courses undismayed! 

Here, where nature makes thy bed, 

Let thy rude, half-human tread 

1 Used by permission of and special arrangement with Houghton, 
Mifflin & Co. 


47 


48 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


Point to hidden Indian springs 
Lost in ferns and fragrant grasses 
Hovered o’er by timid wings, 

Where the wood duck lightly passes, 
Where the wild bee holds her sweets. 
Epicurean retreats, 

Fit for thee, and better than 
Fearful spoils of dangerous man. 

— Bret Harte. 


THE HUNTER’S RETURN 


“ And weren’t you afraid, papa? ” Phyllis 
asked, lifting one of the paws with its great 
claws. 

Her father laughed, as he spread the shaggy 
skin to better advantage. “ I was so busy 
I hadn’t time to think of that until the danger 
was past,” he said. 

Phyllis looked at the great claws of the 
grizzly once more. They were five or six 
inches long and so strong that they seemed 
like hooks of steel. 

“ I wish you wouldn’t go hunting another 
single time,” she said gravely. Her father 
laughed at the danger but kissed her for her 
concern in his behalf. 


49 


50 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


“ Why, my dear little girl,” he said, glow- 
ing with pleasure, “ I am so proud of that 
grizzly that I should like to wear one of its 
claws round my neck as the Indians do, to 
show the whole world what a mighty hunter I 
am.” 

“ But — ” began Phyllis doubtfully. 

“ But tell us about it,” begged Jack joy- 
ously, proud of his father; and very willingly 
his father began, looking again and again at 
the great grey-white bear skin on which both 
children were lying. 

“ He was not a pleasant looking fellow to 
meet as I met him, in the dusk and quite 
alone,” he said. “ Except the polar bear of 
the Arctic country the grizzly is the largest 
and strongest animal that grows wild in 
North America. 

“ In its fore legs, which it uses like arms, 


THE HUNTER’S RETURN 


51 


is terrible strength, and in its claws wonder- 
ful sharpness. With its fore legs it can crush 
and with its awful claws tear to pieces any 
animal on this continent. 

“ The old hunters tell of how, in the old 
days, when immense herds of buffalo wan- 
dered among the foot-hills of the Rockies the 
grizzly dined most often on buffalo meat. 
They say it was a most usual thing for a bear 
to kill and carry away a great bull buffalo. 

“ This fellow was a perfectly immense 
brute with a rough, shaggy, grey-white coat. 
Hunters find that the fur of the grizzly differs 
so greatly in color that it may be described in 
different animals as almost any shade from a 
dirty white to a real brown.” 

“ But the story,” insisted Jack. 

“ He did not see me as soon as I saw him, 
which was lucky for me,” said his father. “ I 


52 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


heard the crackle of the branches as they 
snapped and broke under his tread. 

“ They tell me that bears really do not have 
very quick hearing, and he was coming heav- 
ily up the wooded path, his nose swinging 
close to the ground, and he seemed half asleep. 

“ I just raised my rifle and shot him. There 
was really no danger at the distance from 
which I fired, but at close range the grizzly 
is not a fellow one would want to sit down and 
talk with.” 

“ But he might have eaten you, papa! ” 
and Phyllis’ eyes were big and round. 

“ He might, but he didn’t, as you see,” said 
papa. “ Grizzlies have been known to eat 
almost every kind of thing that can be chewed 
or swallowed. Animals, big and little, wild 
and human; creatures that fly, that creep, 
that swim, have had their place on his bill of 


THE HUNTER’S RETURN 


53 


fare. An ant, a buffalo, or a berry, Mr. Grizzly 
takes them all and enjoys them all.” 

“ Then his appetite is good,” laughed Jack, 
looking at the huge teeth. 

“ Too good, I think,” said Phyllis. “ Does 
he eat other bears? ” 

“ Well, I am not sure about that,” said her 
father, “ but I know he fights another bear 
only when he is quite sure he can win, other- 
wise he turns himself about and takes a more 
convenient path.” 

Jack’s eyes fairly danced. 

“ Oh, I know! ” he shouted. “ I read it in 
a book. The grizzly seems to choose a stretch 
of country for his own hunting ground. 
When he is sure he has found the choicest 
place he stretches up to his full height on his 
hind legs and scratches with his claws and his 
teeth on the tree trunks all about. That is 


54 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


his sign to other bears that this country is 
his.” 

“ And can the other bears read his mes- 
sage? ” Phyllis wanted to know. 

“ Indeed they can, and answer it, too.” 

“ Answer? Answer? ” cried Phyllis. 

“ Yes. If another bear wanders that way 
and sees the claim marks written on the tree 
trunk he raises himself on his hind legs and 
strikes also. 

“ If his claw marks are not so high as the 
first he turns aside from that path and takes 
another direction, but if his claw marks are 
higher he settles right there in that country 
living quite contentedly on game and nuts 
and berries, knowing all the time that sooner 
or later he will meet that bear whose claw 
marks he found on the tree trunks, and who 
is so proven not so large as himself.” 


THE HUNTER’S RETURN 


55 


“ And then — ? ” 

“ Oh, and then they fight — they fight ter- 
ribly, frightfully, with teeth and claws and 
enormous strength. Sometimes the weaker 
bear is killed, sometimes only wounded, but, 
whichever happens, he is beaten and to the 
stronger remains that hunting ground.” 

“ Did you ever hunt any other bear? ” 
Phyllis asked her father. 

“ Yes, I once met a cinnamon or black bear 
in a forest in Maine,” he answered. 

“ Tell us - ” 

“ Not to-night,” he said, rising and unbuck- 
ling his cartridge belt; “ some other time, per- 
haps.” 


THE BEAR AND THE BIRDS 1 


On an early summer morning a shaggy old 
bear and a hungry lean wolf were walking 
together in a deep wood, where the bright 
sunshine could scarcely enter. High in an 
old oak a tomtit sang very merrily. 

“ Sh-h-h,” said the shaggy old bear. 
“ Sh-h-h— listen! What bird is that which 
sings so sweetly? ” 

Now, the wolf was always something of a 
jester, so grinning slyly to himself he replied, 
“ My dear shaggy old bear, do you not really 
know? ” 

“ I really do not, or I should not ask! ” 
growled the bear. 

1 Adapted from Grimm’s Fairy Tales. 

56 


THE BEAR AND THE BIRDS 57 


The wolf shook his head sadly at such woe- 
ful ignorance. 

“ That is the king of the birds,’ * he said. 
“ We must take care to show him proper 
honor.” 

The bear was eager at once. 

“ If that is true,” he said, “ I should like 
better than anything to see his palace. 
Come,” and he stalked on toward the sound 
of the tomtit’s voice. 

“ Slowly, slowly, my shaggy friend,” ad- 
vised the w olf , “ slowly. It would not be 
proper for us to go to the palace when the 
queen is not at home.” 

At that moment the mother bird darted 
through the air with food in her beak. She 
and the singer began to feed the baby birds. 

4 4 Come,” growled the bear, “ now is the 


time.” 


58 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


“ No— no— no! ” yapped the wolf. “ What 
are you thinking of? Where are your man- 
ners? You cannot go when the family dine. 
Wait until the king and queen go out, then 
we will visit the palace. ” 

So they marked the hole where they had 
seen the nest and went away. Soon, how- 
ever, the bear made some excuse and slipped 
away from the wolf. 

As quickly as possible he returned to the 
nest, where he believed the king and queen 
of birds lived. The old birds were gone, and 
peeping in, the shaggy old bear saw just five 
ordinary baby tomtits, with very few feath- 
ers and very wide mouths. 

“ Nonsense,” he growled. “ Nonsense— 
this is no royal palace. It is just a dirty 
bird’s nest. Nothing but little tomtits— 
King indeed! Queen forsooth! ” 


THE BEAR AND THE BIRDS 59 


Now, the young birds heard and screamed, 
part in fright and part in anger. “ You are 
a great brute! ” they shrieked. “ Our father 
and mother are good, honest birds. They will 
pay you as you deserve for growling at 
us! ” 

When they spoke thus, if you will believe 
it, this shaggy old bear grew frightened. 

“ They must be king’s children in dis- 
guise,” he said, “ else they would not dare 
to speak so to me,” and away he ran into 
the woods, as fast as his shaggy old legs 
would carry him. 

But the young tomtits sat up in their nest 
and screamed and screamed with anger, until 
their parents returned and found them nearly 
exhausted from screaming. 

“ He said we were but common birds,” 
they shrieked. 


60 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


“ There, there, there, ” chirped the mother. 

“ Make yourselves quite easy,” twittered 
the father. “ He shall have his due, shaggy 
old bear though he is.” 

The bear in fear had run to his den and 
straight to it flew the parent birds. 

“ Shame, for shame,” they cried. “ Do 
you not know who we are that you speak so 
disrespectfully to our children? We now 
declare war against you. Be the time long 
or short, we will never stop until you have 
had your just punishment,” and away they 
flew. 

When the bear heard the threat he called 
together the ox, the ass, the stag and all the 
beasts of the earth to talk over what should 
be done to defend him. 

The tomtits on their side gathered up their 
army, and a very large army it was; all the 


THE BEAR AND THE BIRDS 61 


birds great and small, the hornets, the gnats, 
the bees, the flies and every other insect that 
could fight its own way. 

As the time drew on, the birds sent out 
spies. The gnat was the most clever spy. 
He flew back and forth and at length hid 
under a leaf, close by which stood the bear 
growling out orders for the day. The gnat 
could hear every word. 

The shaggy old bear first called the fox. 
“ You are the most clever of beasts,” he 
said. “ You shall be our chief and lead us 
to battle ; but first, we must agree upon some 
signal by which we may know what you want 
us to do.” 

“ Ah, yes,” said the fox, splendidly. 4 4 You 
see my beautiful red tail, which looks like a 
plume of feathers. Now, remember, when 
you see me raise my tail, you may be certain 


62 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


that it is safe to charge, that you have noth- 
ing to do but carry off the enemy/ ’ 

And while the animals sat nodding that 
they understood, the gnat flew back and told 
the whole scheme. 

The day of battle came. The beasts came 
rushing to the field with such fearful sounds 
that the earth shook. 

The tomtits’ army came too, flapping and 
fluttering and beating the air. They placed 
themselves in line for battle. 

Then the charge! The hornets following 
orders, charged straight upon the fox, and 
settling on his tail they stung and stung with 
might and main. 

Poor fox! At the first sting he leaped 
into the air, but held his tail up bravely. A 
moment later his tail drooped for an instant 
but went up again. And then, alas, alas, poor 


THE BEAR AND THE BIRDS 63 


fox, he could bear it no longer but clapped 
his tail between his legs and ran. Of course 
the other beasts only obeyed orders when 
they clapped their tails between their legs 
and ran too! 

So the tomtits won, and, to this day, the 
shaggy old bear believes it was the king and 
queen of birds whose babies he disturbed 
that day in the old oak, and the lean, hungry 
wolf, when he hears the story, just sits down 
and howls with laughter, for he knows the 
truth. 


THE BLACK BEAR STORY 

“ Papa, you said—” called Phyllis, as soon 
as she opened her eyes the next morning. 

“ Well, then, I will— just as soon as you 
are dressed and breakfasted,” he called back. 

You may be sure it did not take Phyllis 
many minutes to dress and to scamper out 
into her father’s arms for a good morning 
hug. 

“ It was a regular grizzly bear hug,” 
laughed Phyllis. 

“ And yours,” he returned, “ was a nice 
mild black bear hug.” 

“ Do bears really hug their enemies to 
death? ” she asked. 


64 



U l 


WHEN HER CUBS ARE YOUNG THE MOTHER IS CROSS AND UGLY 































































































































































r 


















































THE BLACK BEAR STORY 65 


“ I don’t like to disappoint you, but I 
really think they do not,” said her father. 
“ People probably got that notion because 
bears often stand on their hind legs when 
attacked and fight with their fore legs and 
teeth. Now, to your breakfast, young lady.” 

“ And the black bear? ” she asked, as she 
poured cream on her blueberries. 

“ Is as fond of blueberries as you. Eat 
your breakfast.” 

“ And the black bear,” she repeated, when 
they walked down the mountain path a little 
later. 

“ The black bear is a very shy, timid cousin 
of the grizzly,” he said. “ The black bear 
can fight if he finds he must, but he prefers 
to run, if it is possible. 

“ When her cubs are young the mother is 
cross and ugly. She does not run then, but 


66 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


will protect her young with her life if need 
be. 

“ Do not think, though, that the black bear 
is a coward. He fights if cornered or at- 
tacked, and fights gallantly, but he has a 
peaceable nature and does not seek trouble 
when it can conveniently be avoided.” 

“ And the little bears— the cubs? ” asked 
Phyllis. 

“ I can’t think of anything you’d like bet- 
ter for a pet,” said her father. “ At first 
they are tiny, helpless, shapeless little things, 
not so big as you were when you were born. 
They are just little black furry balls with 
their eyes tight shut like a baby kitten’s. 

“ But oh, how they do grow, and how 
funny and full of tricks they are! It would 
make you laugh to see them running, jump- 
ing and wrestling together. 


THE BLACK BEAR STORY 67 


4 4 They seem to especially delight in play- 
ing pranks on their mother. She is quite 
gentle with them and seems to enjoy the 
fun, and teaches them as patiently as your 
mother teaches you.” 

44 But what does she teach them? ” 

44 Oh, there are many things for young 
bears to learn,” said her father. 44 She shows 
them where the finest berries grow; she 
teaches them how to find the trees where the 
wild bees store away their winter supplies. 
She lets them poke their inquisitive little 
noses into the hollow tree and when the little 
bears feel the sting and run and howl she 
has taught them a lesson in caution. 

44 Then she shows them that it takes cour- 
age to attack a bee’s nest, but that it’s quite 
worth while. It is quite worth while the cubs 
think as, forgetting the stings on their young 


68 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


noses, they eagerly gobble up the last drop 
of honey. 

“ Bears often get badly stung, but they 
are extremely fond of honey, and they never 
give up until they get it. So they learn their 
lessons at the bee tree, caution, bravery and 
perseverance. 

“ Again, the mother shows her cubs how 
with their claws they can snap nice fat bull- 
frogs right out of the water and into their 
mouths at one stroke; she shows them where 
field mice hide, how to catch crickets and 
grasshoppers in the grass, how to dig for 
roots and bugs when food is scarce. In short, 
she teaches them that the whole forest is 
their table and that they must learn to help 
themselves. 

“ And not the forest only, but the farm- 
yard also, for next to honey the black bear 


THE BLACK BEAR STORY 69 


loves young pigs’ meat. In nothing is the 
cubs’ mother quite so careful in her training 
as to his calls at the farmer’s pig-pen. For 
the capture of this dainty has cost many a 
healthy bear his life. 

u It was on a black bear’s second visit to 
our neighbor’s pig-pen in Maine that I shot 
my first bear. It seems strange when they 
are so timid and fear men so, that they will 
risk so much for a mouthful of pork. 

“ A strange habit of all bears is called 
hibernation— this long word means that along 
about the first of November they crawl into 
their snug winter quarters, roll themselves 
up very comfortably and go to sleep, not to 
wake up bright and early the next morning, 
but bright and early next spring. From 
November to March they sleep without food 
or drink. Lucky it is that they have fed 


70 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


well on the fall fruits and nuts before they 
go to bed, for the fatter they are the more 
pleasant are their wintry dreams. 

“ When they come out in the spring they 
are thin and very hungry, and as soon as 
they waken they start at once in search of 
food. At this time of the year it is often a 
difficult task and with tender feet and empty 
stomach Mr. Bear often travels miles before 
he finds his breakfast. 

“ All bears hibernate, whether they be 
grizzly or cinnamon, the brown bear of Eu- 
rope or the black bear of Florida. 

“ The black bear is found in all parts of 
North America north of the Gulf of Mexico. 
His coat is far more beautiful than any other 
bear’s. The fur is somewhat glossy and quite 
even and fine. It is quite valuable, too. The 
skin of the robber of our neighbor’s pig-pen 


THE BLACK BEAR STORY 71 


brought me twenty-five dollars, which is, I 
believe, about the usual price.’ ’ 

“ I think I like the black bear best,” said 
Phyllis. 

“ How about the polar bear? ” asked her 
father. 

“ Oh, I had quite forgotten him! ” ex- 
claimed Phyllis. 

4 4 Should you ever meet him you’d think 
him worth remembering,” said her father. 
“ But—” answering the look in her eyes— 
“ not this time.” 


MANABUSH AND THE BEARS 1 

AN INDIAN LEGEND 

Manabush was a little Indian boy who 
lived in what is now the state of Wisconsin. 
There are broad prairies to the westward 
and tangled swamps, small lakes and wood- 
lands nearer the shore of the Great Lakes. 

Though Manabush was young he was quite 
renowned as a hunter, and had killed many 
of the wildest, fiercest animals. 

Manabush lived with his three elder broth- 
ers, who were not often kind to him, but al- 
ways discontented and harsh. At last Mana- 
bush decided to go far away, never to return. 

1 Adapted from Ethnological Bureau Report. 

72 


MANABUSH AND THE BEARS 73 


“ Ah, but perhaps you will be more un- 
happy there than here,” said his sister, who 
loved him. 

“ That would be quite impossible,” replied 
Manabush. “ And, you must remember, my 
enchanted arrows will preserve me from dan- 
ger.” 

“ But there are only four of them,” said 
his sister, “ and when they are gone you 
will be quite at the mercy of any danger 
which may befall you.” 

“ I must go,” said the boy doggedly. 

His sister urged him no more, but from her 
hair she took an ornament made from a bit 
of shining stone. She gave it to the boy, who 
looked at her wonderingly. 

Then from her wigwam the girl brought a 
basket of blueberries. The boy wondered 
still more. Then his sister explained. 


74 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


“ Take these things,” she said, “ and do 
not part with them for anything until the time 
comes that you are in terrible danger for 
your life and there is no other way of 
escape.” 

“ And then what shall I do with a hair 
ornament and a handful of blueberries? ” 
said the boy, half-laughing, half -believing. 

“ That I cannot tell,” replied the girl, 
“ save that you do whatever comes in your 
mind at the moment. Do not fear, and it will 
be right.” 

The boy hunter still had his four arrows, 
which were later to become of great use to 
him. He started quite bravely in an entirely 
new direction, hoping that he might arrive 
at a place where he could live in peace, hap- 
piness and safety. 

He travelled for many days and nothing 


MANABUSH AND THE BEARS 75 


befell him, save that he did not yet find the 
place for which he was seeking. 

At length, while he was going slowly along, 
Manabush heard behind him a peculiar 
sound as of many footsteps. Looking ha- 
stily back he saw some bears following. In 
an instant he realized that the bears had dis- 
covered his trail and were after him. 

Now, Manabush was a wonderful hunter 
and his heart knew no fear, for had he not 
the four enchanted arrows? 

The country through which he was pass- 
ing seemed an endless prairie with nothing 
growing on it save short grass. 

There was no place to hide so he ran on 
swiftly, not caring to use the arrows unless 
it was absolutely necessary. 

But, as he sped onward, Manabush heard 
a voice which said to him: u When the bears 


76 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


catch you they will eat you. Use your ar- 
rows at once.” 

Immediately the boy obeyed. Taking an 
arrow from his quiver he fixed it to his bow- 
string and took aim. When he was ready to 
shoot Manabush spoke to the magic arrow 
and said: “ When you come down there shall 
be a grove of young trees as wide as your 
flight. In the grove I shall hide myself.” 

Forth sped the arrow and where it struck 
a hole was cut in the ground and the arrow 
sank from sight. Around the hole on all 
sides sprang up a dense growth of brush and 
young trees. 

The boy ran to the hole and hid; but the 
angry bears soon caught the scent of his foot- 
steps and followed, tearing up earth, stones, 
and underbrush. When they were quite near 
Manabush discovered that the hole ran for 


MANABUSH AND THE BEARS 77 


a long distance underground, and along this 
passage he made his way, coming out again 
on the prairie miles beyond. 

For a long time the bears lost the track, 
but at length they spied Manabush far across 
the prairie. 

With snarls of rage they set off after him, 
but when they were quite near, he shot the 
second arrow and it happened exactly as 
before. 

Again the bears took up the trail and were 
close upon the boy. Then he shot the third 
arrow and again it happened exactly as be- 
fore. 

Then when the bears were so near that he 
could feel their hot breath on his cheek he 
shot the fourth and last arrow and delayed 
them once more. 

After a long time the bears again took 


78 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


up the trail, and with his last magic arrow 
gone the boy was in peril for his life. 

The chase was a long one and the boy 
began to tire and the bears to gain on him. 
As they neared him the bears shouted, “ Now, 
we have you. It will not be long now until 
we catch you! ” 

Then the boy remembered the hair orna- 
ment of shining stone which his sister had 
given him, and, taking it out of his pouch, 
he put it in a strip of buckskin and slung it 
several times round his head, then threw it 
forward on the prairie, saying: “ As I sling 
this it will cause a high rock to appear upon 
which I shall take refuge.” 

The little stone bounded and bounced and 
rolled along over the ground and suddenly, 
lo, there stood a great steep cliff with a flat 
top and many loose stones lying upon it. 


MANABUSH AND THE BEARS 79 

Manabush found himself on top of the cliff, 
and the bears at the base were running about 
and growling frightfully. 

Manabush began to push great stones down 
upon the bears, and many of them were 
crushed to death while others were injured 
so that they were disabled. 

The bears were astonished, and while they 
were staring at their wounded companions 
Manabush slipped down on the other side of 
the cliff and started in a new direction. 

When it became so quiet on top of the cliff 
and the stones ceased falling the bears sus- 
pected that Manabush had escaped. Quickly 
they found his tracks and took up the trail. 

The boy was in despair, when he remem- 
bered the blueberries. “ It is of no use,” he 
cried despairingly. But, nevertheless, he 
took them from his basket and flung them 


80 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


into the air, crying: “ Where you fall blue- 
berry bushes will spring up everywhere, bear- 
ing ripe fruit by the basketful. This shall 
save me.” 

Where the berries fell, up sprang blueberry 
bushes laden with fruit. 

Now, the bears had not eaten anything for 
a long time and they were quite famished. 
They stopped with grunts of satisfaction to 
eat their fill at the blueberry patch and so 
far as Manabush knows they are still eating 
there to this day, for he never saw them 
again, though many times he looked back as 
he travelled on over the grass-grown prairies 
until he came to the land where he found 
peace and happiness and safety. 


IN SNOWY HOMES 

“ Is it true that baby polar bears live in 
a snow-house? ” asked artful Phyllis. 

“ It is quite true that they are often born 
in a snow-house/ ’ said her father. “ You 
remember that the black and grizzly cubs 
are born in the early summer, so that by 
autumn they are quite big, and strong enough 
to face the cold of winter. 

“ But in polar countries the summer is so 
short that the baby bears would be still ba- 
bies when the first cold of winter came upon 
them and they would die. 

“ So the little white bear baby is not born 


until winter.’ * 


81 


82 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


“ But that must be worse still/’ cried 
Phyllis. 

“ Oh, no. The mother bear knows very 
well how to provide for her young ones. She 
finds a sheltered cave among the rocks some- 
times. At other times she curls up in the 
hollow lap of some rock and lets the snow 
drift over her as it will. Again she digs a 
hole in a deep snowdrift and creeps in. 

“ As soon as the snow drifts in on all sides 
mother bear is in a snow-hut as snug and as 
tight as the Eskimo’s own. And it is quite 
warm in there, too, from the warmth of her 
great body. The snow about her melts from 
the heat of her body and so forms an ice- 
lined cave with a slender shaft kept open to 
the air by the warmth of her breath. 

“It is here that the baby bears are born, 
soon after the mother goes into winter quar- 


IN SNOWY HOMES 


83 


ters, and it is here that they remain until 
spring comes. They sleep the winter away 
snug and warm. From their mother the cubs 
(two, and sometimes three) get their only 
food,— and the mother, poor thing, gets no 
food at all. 

“ She was very fat and strong in the fall 
from the rich food of the seas; salmon, wal- 
rus and seal. But when she comes out in 
the spring— when the winter sun and the 
warmth of their bodies has released them 
from their cave— she is indeed a sorry sight, 
gaunt and thin and so weak she can hardly 
walk. 

“ But Mrs. Polar Bear knows where to find 
food even before the ice is broken in the sea. 
Do not the wild fowl build their nests on the 
cliffs near by, just for her— and what were 
baby seals made for but to be food for her 


84 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


babies? So they grow strong and able to 
take care of themselves. ” 

“ And what does Mother Polar Bear teach 
her children? Not to gather blueberries or 
hunt honey or young pigs, I know,’’ said 
Phyllis. 

“ No, not any of those things/ ’ laughed 
her father. “ She teaches them to climb icy 
cliffs so steep and slippery that you would not 
believe it possible. She teaches them to rob 
birds’ nests and to spring upon and kill any 
animal of that snowy land, even the Eskimo 
himself. She shows them where, when no 
other food is to be found, they may crop the 
short marsh grass and dig for roots. 

“ But there is one thing Baby Polar Bear 
knows for himself. No one needs teach him 
to swim. He is sometimes called ‘ The Bear 
of the Icy Sea.’ Never, even when the water 


IN SNOWY HOMES 


85 


is filled with great floating cakes of ice, does 
it seem too cold for a swim. 

“ He can swim under water, too, like a 
crocodile, with just his nose and his eyes 
above. It is in this way he creeps up on the 
unwary seals, and carries them off in his ter- 
rible claws. ” 

“ And the polar bear is the largest of all 
bears ? ” Phyllis asked, although she already 
knew. 

“ Yes, it is not unusual to find polar bears 
ten feet long— their shaggy thick hair is al- 
ways pure creamy white, and, unlike other 
bears, there is hair on the bottom of the polar 
bear’s feet. This is true of a great many of 
the Arctic creatures. Can you guess why? ” 

“ And are they very fierce? ” asked Phyl- 
lis. 

46 Very,” said her father. “ Many an Es- 


86 


THE BEAR FAMILY 


kimo has lost his life in the cruel paws of the 
polar bear. In late years, however, the polar 
bear has learned to fear fire-arms and is not 
so dangerous as formerly.’ ’ 

“ I don’t know what I should do if I were 
to meet a polar bear,” said Phyllis. 

“I do,” said Jack promptly. “ I’d hit 
him on the nose.” 

Phyllis and her father gave a shout of 
laughter and Jack looked rather crestfallen. 

“ I read it in a book,” he said. 

“ And you are quite right that a bear’s 
nose is his most sensitive place,” said his 
father. “ I only doubted whether you would 
stay near enough to strike his nose. Tell us 
your story.” 

“ A hunter once saved his own life by 
knowing about the bear’s sensitive nose,” 
said Jack. “ It seems that the hunter saw 


IN SNOWY HOMES 


87 


the bear and shot at him, injuring but not 
killing him. 

“ The beast turned and the hunter, in start- 
ing to run, tripped and fell flat. In an instant 
the bear was upon him, caught him by the 
leg and held him fast. 

“ The hunter was nearly fainting with the 
pain when an idea suddenly occurred to him. 
Partly raising himself he struck the bear 
several times across his sensitive nose with 
his gun. The bear was unable to endure the 
pain and let go his hold. The hunter escaped 
before the bear could catch him.” 

“ It’s a good thing to know, but I hope I 
shall never need to use the knowledge,” 
laughed papa. 


ALL ABOUT THE BEAK 


SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY 

All Bears .— Have small ears and not very 
good hearing— thick, shaggy coats— thinner 
in southern, thicker in polar bears— heavy, 
strong bodies— walk with flat feet— five toes 
on each foot— sharp, cruel claws— short tails 
—nose very sensitive.— Cubs very small— 
usually not more than two or three.— Food— 
almost anything animal or vegetable.— Hiber- 
nate. 

Grizzly Bear .— Fur especially shaggy— 
varies in color from dirty white to deep 
brown — very large — fierce — strong — length 
about seven feet— weight as high as 1200 
pounds.— Found in Rocky Mountains and 
north from Hudson Bay. 

Black Bear .— Smaller than grizzly.— Fur 
88 


ALL ABOUT THE BEAR 


89 


jet black (except nose, which is creamy 
white) and fine, even and glossy.— Valuable 
—Rather friendly and frolicsome— savage 
only when with young or when cornered.— 
Food chiefly vegetable and small animals— 
very fond of honey and pork.— Found in 
timber land all over United States and Can- 
ada. 

Polar Bear .— Largest of all bears— length 
from eight to ten feet— extremely fierce — 
excellent swimmer— procures most of its food 
from sea.— Fur (at all seasons of the year) 
creamy white, very thick and shaggy— tip of 
nose black— soles of feet covered with hair.— 
Mother polar— takes up winter quarters in 
snowbank or cave— here young are born— re- 
ceive their only nourishment from her until 
spring— comes out very gaunt and thin.— 
Found in Arctic regions. 








































THE CAT FAMILY 




THE CAT FAMILY 

THE MOUNTAIN LION'S STORY 

One morning, a week or two after the skin 
of the grizzly was procured, Phyllis ’ father 
came down again in his rough hunting clothes. 

“ Not again? ” begged Phyllis in alarm, 
for she did not deem these big wild animals 
so friendly as the smaller ones that she had 
made the acquaintance of w T hen she was a 
little girl. 

“ Yes, indeed. Mamma settled that yes- 
terday. She said I might go. Please , Phyl- 
lis— ” and there was a twinkle in his merry 
eyes. 

93 


94 


THE CAT FAMILY 


“ Well, don't let a grizzly eat you,” said 
Phyllis. 

“ I’ll give the grizzly your orders if I meet 
him,” was the grave answer. 

“ And be careful about the wolves,” 
warned Phyllis. 

“I’ll run right home if I hear a coyote 
bark,” laughed he. 

“ I do wish you had some one to take care 
of you,” said she. “ There is no telling what 
might—” 

“ Nothing is going to happen, dear little 
girl,” he answered, “ and, besides, I shall 
have company,— very good company, too, so 
you need not worry—” 

“ Who? ” queried Phyllis. 

“ Captain Trails,” was the reply. “ He is 
a great hunter, having travelled in almost 
every country all over the world, and trapped 


THE MOUNTAIN LION’S STORY 95 


or shot game of nearly every kind. Perhaps, 
when we return, he will tell you some of his 
fine tales.” 

And so it was that her father hade them 
all good-by, and leaping to the saddle rode 
out toward the mountains, where he was to 
meet the friend of his boyhood. 

During the weeks that he was gone Phyllis 
read bear stories and wolf stories, and Jack 
sat half the time in the top of a tall cotton- 
wood watching, for they did not know on 
what day to expect the hunter’s return. 

As it chanced, however, neither of the 
children were on the lookout, and it was 
mamma alone who welcomed them when 
they came. 

The hunters brought no skins this time, but 
just a healthy tan and a report of a splendid 
time with many adventures. When Phyllis 


96 


THE CAT FAMILY 


and Jack came in they wished to know every- 
thing that had happened. 

“ Did yon see any more bears? ” asked 
Phyllis. “ What did you see? ” 

“We saw a mountain lion,” said papa, 
“ and a big fellow he was, measuring fully 
ten feet in length.” 

“ A lion? ” cried Phyllis, with wide, fright- 
ened eyes. 

“ Well,” said papa, “ our mountain lions, 
you know, are very unlike the magnificent 
King of Beasts, as the African lion is called.” 

“ But— a lion? ” 

“ It is quite as much of a lion as I care to 
meet,” he said. “ The beast has several 
names according to the location in which it 
is found. Sometimes it is called a panther, 
or again a cougar, a puma, a painter, or yet 
again the silvery or mountain lion. 



“ ‘ THE MOUNTAIN LION IS NOT A PLEASANT FELLOW TO MEET.’ ” 


m 

emus iwmnm om. /m. 






THE MOUNTAIN LION'S STORY 97 


“ It is found in both North and South 
America, in the warmest countries and the 
coldest. 

“ The mountain lion is not a pleasant fel- 
low to meet, and yet I think he is not the 
fierce creature we are apt to imagine 
him. 

“ The one we saw ran away at sight of us, 
slipping away behind rocks and bushes as 
noiselessly as a cat. It showed no wish for 
closer acquaintance. 

“ There are many terrible tales told of the 
days when settlers were few and mountain 
lions many. It was no unusual thing in those 
days for one of these big cats to slink silently 
up to the farm-yard to steal cattle or colts 
or horses. 

“ One might even sometimes lie along a 
branch in the deep shadows and as the farm 


98 


THE CAT FAMILY 


lad or his neighbor passed that way drop 
upon him without a sound. 

“ The mountain lion is always a strangely 
silent beast, though when wounded, is some- 
times known to utter a wild piercing shriek.” 

“ And how does it look? ” Phyllis inquired. 

“ Just like a great yellowish-brown cat,” 
said her father. “ Along the back runs a 
darker shade, the tail is tipped with dark 
brown and the belly is a dull white.” 

“ And how big? ” asked Jack. 

“ From eight to ten feet in length, but, you 
must remember, that three or four feet of 
that length is in the tail.” 

“ And the babies? ” 

“ The strange thing about the mountain 
lion’s cubs is that when born they are spotted 
and have tails ringed with dark brown. You 
might think them leopards’ cubs from their 


THE MOUNTAIN LION’S STORY 99 


appearance. Belonging to the cat family 
they are more like great kittens than any- 
thing you can imagine. 

“ The mountain lion catches its prey after 
the same fashion that a cat catches hers. 
More than one brave hunter has fallen under 
its terrible claws, though it is not usual for 
it to attack man unless provoked to it. 

“ Deer are the mountain lion’s ordinary 
food, but sheep, calves, pigs, colts,— even 
horses and cows have been killed and dragged 
by it to its hidden lair. 

“ It is the largest animal of the cat family 
native to America, but I am sure that Cap- 
tain Trails can tell you of some bigger cats 
which he has seen in Asia and Africa.” 


LILY AND THE LION 1 


A merchant who had three daughters was 
setting out upon a journey. Before he went 
he asked each daughter what he should bring 
back to her. 

The eldest wished for pearls, the second 
for jewels, but the third said, “ Dear father, 
bring me a rose.” 

Now, it was no easy task to find a rose, 
for it was the middle of winter, yet, as she 
was his prettiest daughter, and was very 
fond of flowers, her father said he would do 
what he could. So he kissed all three, and 
bid them good-by. 

And when the time came for him to go 

1 Adapted from Grimm’s Fairy Tales. 

100 


LILY AND THE LION 


101 


home, he had bought pearls and jewels for the 
two eldest, but he had sought everywhere in 
vain for the rose; and when he went into any 
garden and asked for such a thing, the people 
laughed at him, and asked him whether he 
thought roses grew in snow. This grieved 
him very much, for Lily was his dearest child; 
and as he was journeying home, thinking 
what he should bring her, he came to a fine 
castle; and around the castle was a garden, 
in one half of which it seemed to be summer 
time, and in the other half winter. On one 
side the finest flowers were in full bloom, and 
on the other everything looked dreary and 
buried in the snow. “ A lucky hit! ” said he, 
as he called to his servant, and told him to go 
to a beautiful bed of roses that was there and 
bring him away one of the finest flowers. 

This done, they were riding away well 


102 


THE CAT FAMILY 


pleased, when up sprang a fierce lion, and 
roared out, “ Whoever has stolen my roses 
shall be eaten up alive! ” Then the man 
said, “ I knew not that the garden belonged 
to you; can nothing save my life? ” “ No! ” 
said the lion, “ nothing, unless you undertake 
to give me whatever meets you first on your 
return home: if you agree to this, I will give 
you your life, and the rose, too, for your 
daughter.’ ’ But the man was unwilling to do 
so, and said, “ It may be my youngest daugh- 
ter, who loves me most, and always runs to 
meet me when I go home.” Then the servant 
was greatly frightened, and said, “ It may 
perhaps be only a cat or a dog.” And at last 
the man yielded with a heavy heart, and took 
the rose, and said he would give the lion 
whatever should meet him first on his return. 

And as he came near home, it was Lily, his 


LILY AND THE LION 


103 


youngest and dearest daughter, that met him; 
she came running, and kissed him, and wel- 
comed him home; and when she saw that he 
had brought her the rose, she was still more 
glad. But her father began to be very sor- 
rowful, and to weep, saying, “ Alas, my dear- 
est child! I have bought this flower at a high 
price, for I have said I would give you to a 
wild lion; and when he has you, he will tear 
you in pieces, and eat you.” Then he told 
her all that had happened, and said she should 
not go, let what would happen. 

But she comforted him, and said, “ Dear 
father, the word you have given must be 
kept; I will go to the lion, and soothe him: 
perhaps he will let me come safe home again.” 

The next morning she asked the way she 
was to go, and took leave of her father, and 
went forth with a bold heart into the wood. 


104 


THE CAT FAMILY 


But the lion was an enchanted prince. By 
day he and all his court were lions, but in the 
evening they took their right forms again. 
And when Lily came to the castle, he wel- 
comed her so courteously that she agreed to 
marry him. The wedding-feast was held, and 
they lived happily together a long time. The 
prince was only to be seen as soon as evening 
came, and then he held his court; but every 
morning he left his bride, and went away by 
himself, she knew not whither, till the night 
came again. 

After some time he said to her, “ To- 
morrow there will be a great feast in your 
father’s house, for your eldest sister is to be 
married; and if you wish to go and visit her 
my lions shall lead you thither.” Then she 
rejoiced much at the thoughts of seeing her 
father once more, and set out with the lions; 


LILY AND THE LION 


105 


and every one was overjoyed to see her, for 
they had thought her dead long since. But 
she told them how happy she was, and stayed 
till the feast was over, and then went back 
to the wood. 

Her second sister was soon after married, 
and when Lily was asked to the wedding, she 
said to the prince, “ I will not go alone this 
time— you must go with me.” But he would 
not, and said that it would be a very hazard- 
ous thing; for if the least ray of the torch- 
light should fall upon him his enchantment 
would become still worse, for he should be 
changed into a dove, and be forced to wander 
about the world for seven long years. How- 
ever she gave him no rest, and said she would 
take care no light should fall upon him. So 
at last they set out together, and took with 
them their little child; and she chose a large 


106 


THE CAT FAMILY 


hall with thick walls for him to sit in while 
the wedding-torches were lighted; but, un- 
luckily, no one saw that there was a crack in 
the door. Then the wedding was held with 
great pomp, but as the train came from the 
church, and passed with the torches before 
the hall, a very small ray of light fell upon 
the prince. In a moment he disappeared, and 
when his wife came in and looked for him, 
she found only a white dove; and it said to 
her, “ Seven years must I fly up and down 
over the face of the earth, but, every now and 
then I will let fall a white feather, that will 
show you the way I am going; follow it, and 
at last you may overtake and set me 
free.” 

This said, he flew out at the door, and poor 
Lily followed; and every now and then a 
white feather fell, and showed her the way 


LILY AND THE LION 


107 


she was to journey. Thus she went roving on 
through the wide world, and looked neither 
to the right hand nor to the left, nor took any 
rest, for seven years. Then she began to be 
glad, and thought to herself that the time was 
fast coming when all her troubles should end; 
yet repose was still far off, for one day as 
she was travelling on she missed the white 
feather, and when she lifted up her eyes she 
could nowhere see the dove. “ Now,” 
thought she to herself, “ no aid of man can 
be of use to me.” So she went to the sun and 
said, “ Thou shinest everywhere, on the hill’s 
top and the valley’s depth— hast thou any- 
where seen my white dove? ” “No,” said 
the sun, u I have not seen it; but I will give 
thee a casket— open it when thy hour of need 
comes.” 

So she thanked the sun, and went on her 


108 


THE CAT FAMILY 


way till eventide; and when the moon arose, 
she cried unto it, and said, “ Thou shinest 
through all the night, over field and grove; 
hast thou nowhere seen my white dove? ” 
“No,” said the moon, “ I cannot help thee; 
but I will give thee an egg— break it when 
need comes.” 

Then she thanked the moon, and went on 
till the night-wind blew; and she raised up 
her voice to it, and said, “ Thou blowest 
through every tree and under every leaf: hast 
thou not seen my white dove? ” “ No,” said 
the night- wind, “ but I will ask three other 
winds; perhaps they have seen it.” Then 
the east wind and the west wind came, and 
said they too had not seen it, but the south 
wind said, “ I have seen the white dove— he 
has fled to the Red Sea, and is changed once 
more into a lion, for the seven years are 


LILY AND THE LION 


109 


passed away, and there he is fighting with a 
dragon; and the dragon is an enchanted prin- 
cess, who seeks to separate him from thee.” 
Then the night-wind said, “ I will give thee 
counsel. Go to the Red Sea; on the right 
shore stand many rods— count them, and 
when thou comest to the eleventh, break it 
off, and smite the dragon with it; and so the 
lion will have the victory, and both of them 
will appear to thee in their own forms. Then 
set out at once with thy beloved prince, and 
journey home over sea and land, but be sure 
and do not delay! ” 

So our poor wanderer went forth, and 
found all as the night-wind had said; and she 
plucked the eleventh rod, and smote the 
dragon, and the lion forthwith became a 
prince, and the dragon a princess again. But 
Lily forgot the counsel which the night-wind 


110 


THE CAT FAMILY 


had given, and did not set out at once home- 
ward; and the false princess watched her 
time, and took the prince by the arm, and 
carried him away. 

Thus the unhappy traveller was again for- 
saken and forlorn; but she took heart and 
said, “ As far as the wind blows, and so long 
as the cock crows, I will journey on, till I 
find him once again. ” She went on for a 
long, long way, till at length she came to the 
castle whither the princess had carried the 
prince; and there was a feast got ready, and 
she heard that the wedding was about to be 
held. “ Heaven aid me now! ” said she; and 
she took the casket that the sun had given 
her, and found that within it lay a dress as 
dazzling as the sun itself. So she put it on, 
and went into the palace, and all the people 
gazed upon her; and the dress pleased the 


LILY AND THE LION 111 

bride so much that she asked whether it was 
to he sold. “ Not for gold and silver,” said 
she; “ but for flesh and blood.” The princess 
asked what she meant, and she said, “ Let 
me speak with the bridegroom this night in 
his chamber, and I will give thee the dress.” 
At last the princess agreed, but she told her 
chamberlain to give the prince a sleeping 
draught, that he might not hear or see her. 
When evening came, and the prince had 
fallen asleep, she was led into his chamber, 
and she sat herself down at his feet and said, 
“ I have followed thee seven years. I have 
been to the sun, the moon, and the night-wind 
to seek thee, and at last I have helped thee 
to overcome the dragon. Wilt thou then for- 
get me quite? ” 

But the prince all the time slept so soundly 
that her voice only passed over him and 


112 


THE CAT FAMILY 


seemed like the whistling of the wind among 
the fir-trees. 

Then poor Lily was led away and forced 
to give up the dress of gold, and when she 
saw that there was no help for her, she went 
out into a meadow and sat herself down and 
wept. 

But as she sat she bethought herself of the 
egg that the moon had given her; and when 
she broke it, there ran out a hen and twelve 
chicks all of pure gold, that played about and 
nestled under the old one’s wings, forming 
the most beautiful sight in the world. 

And she rose and drove them before her, 
till the bride saw them from her window and 
was so pleased that she came forth and asked 
her if she would sell the brood. 

“ Not for gold or silver, but for flesh and 
blood: let me again this evening speak with 


LILY AND THE LION 113 

the bridegroom in his chamber and I will 
give thee the whole brood.’ ’ 

Then the princess thought to betray her as 
before and agreed to what she asked: but 
when the prince went to his chamber he asked 
the chamberlain why the wind had whistled 
so in the night. 

And the chamberlain told him all— how he 
had been given a sleeping draught and how 
a poor maiden had come and spoken to him, 
and was to come again that night. 

Then the prince took care to throw away 
the sleeping draught and when Lily came 
and began again to tell him what woes had 
befallen her and how faithful and true to him 
she had been, he knew her voice and sprang 
up and said, “ You have awakened me as if 
from a dream, for the strange princess had 
thrown a spell around me, so that I had alto- 


114 


THE CAT FAMILY 


gether forgotten you; but Heaven hath sent 
you to me in a lucky hour.” 

And they stole away out of the palace, and 
journeyed home, and there they found their 
child, now grown up to be comely and fair, 
and after all their troubles they lived happily 
together to the end of their days. 


THE CAPTAIN’S LION STORY 


Captain Trails was a little man with a quiet 
smile and mild manner. 

Nevertheless, he was a great hunter— fear- 
less and seemingly tireless— and though not 
given to boasting or talking much about him- 
self he told the children, from time to time, 
of many wonderful adventures in strange 
lands. 

“ At one time,” said Captain Trails, “ I 
was travelling through the dense hot jungle 
of Africa. For many days the party had 
trudged on without danger or disturbance, 
either from animals or black men. 

66 But one evening, at about sunset, a great, 
savage looking black fellow came running 

115 


116 


THE CAT FAMILY 


into our camp and began speaking rapidly 
and excitedly in his own language. 

“ By his gestures and general appearance 
we could see that something was wrong. I 
called our guide, who could speak his lan- 
guage, and begged that he find out what was 
the matter with his countryman. 

“ After a few moments’ conversation the 
guide turned to us in distress. 

“ ‘ It is the fear of the lions,’ he said. 
i The people of the village are so terrified 
that they wish to leave their homes and go 
elsewhere to build huts and live, but they 
fear to move because the lions watch from 
every comer.’ 

“ ‘ Nonsense! ’ I exclaimed carelessly, in 
order to calm the negro’s chattering fear, but 
I knew very well that it was very far from 


nonsense. 


THE CAPTAIN’S LION STORY 117 


“ ‘ Indeed, no! ’ cried the guide, i Indeed, 
no! One night a family was awakened by a 
noise on the roof. They knew what the 
sound meant, but they dared not move, be- 
cause they knew that other lions watched 
beside the door and in the thicket. 

“ 6 In a moment, just as both lion and the 
people within expected, the frail thatch roof 
began to fall. The lion leaped in and amid 
roarings and fierce growls carried its victims 
away.’ ” 

“ Ugh-h-h!! ” shivered Phyllis. 

The captain patted her hand and smiled 
down on her quite gently. “ It was a long, 
long way from here, and many years ago,” he 
said. 

“ Go on,” Phyllis whispered. 

“ 1 And now,’ the guide resumed, ‘ the 
great beasts have grown so bold that they do 


118 THE CAT FAMILY 

not wait for darkness, but spring into the 
village in broad daylight.’ 

“ 6 Why do not their hunters find the 
hiding places and kill the lions? ’ I asked. 

“ ‘ Ah, but not twice do they appear from 
the same place,’ he replied. 6 Yesterday a 
mother with her baby astride her hip went 
down the river to fill her water-jug. As she 
stooped there was a shaking of the tall 
plumed grasses and a scream from both 
mother and lion, another rustle of the grasses 
and the lion and baby were gone and the 
mother wept beside the broken water-jug. 

“ ‘ Again the lion lay crouched upon the 
low branch of a tree and dropped without a 
sound upon the unlucky fellow who passed 
beneath.’ ” 

“ That was like the mountain lion,” said 
Phyllis. 


THE CAPTAIN’S LION STORY 119 


“ Yes, they belong to the same family— 
the cat family,” replied the captain. 

“ ‘ Still again,’ said the man, 6 the lioness 
lay hiding, for no one knows how long, 
crouched among the dark brown and yellow 
grasses that are so nearly the color of her 
coat that you could scarcely see her there. A 
little boy passed that way. She caught him 
in her mouth and was off before he could 
utter a sound. 

“ ‘ At another time a young man returning 
from the day’s hunt caught a glimpse of the 
lion’s tawny sides among the foliage, but lost 
it again so soon that he thought it must have 
been a mistake. 

“ ‘ Yet again and again he uneasily seemed 
to feel the eyes upon him, though he could 
neither see the animal nor hear any sound. 

“ ‘ For hours the young man felt himself 


120 


THE CAT FAMILY 


followed, but not another glimpse of the beast 
did he catch. Being a skilled and fearless 
hunter and well trained in the forest ways he 
kept such a close watch that he managed to 
escape when the lion did finally spring. 

“ ‘ It is nearly every day now that the beast 
claims a breakfast, dinner or supper from the 
village. Alas, it, as many another African 
village, will soon be deserted because of the 
hungry man-eater.’ 

“ ‘ But why,’ I asked, 6 do your hunters 
not kill the beasts? ’ 

“ ‘ Ah, you do not understand, sir,’ said 
the native, 6 the man-eating lions bear en- 
chanted lives and thus make all our weapons 
useless.’ 

“ ‘ Nonsense! ’ I cried. My entire party 
were eager to set out at once, though twilight 
was approaching. 


THE CAPTAIN’S LION STORY 121 


u We reached the village to find the people 
huddled together, straining their frightened 
eyes into the shadows to see if perhaps their 
awful enemy crouched there. 

“ The lions, however, seemed to feel that 
something different was astir. While we did 
not once catch sight of their tawny sides, 
nor hear a single sound, yet we were sure, 
just as was the young hunter of whom I told 
you, that they were there— watching. 

“ Once I was almost certain that there was 
a waving of the grass tops not caused by the 
wind. I did not wish to fire at random 
though, and frighten them away without 
harming them. 

“ It was near sunrise when we who were 
stationed near the river heard a slight splash- 
ing and saw the lion just bending his shaggy 
head to drink. 


122 


THE CAT FAMILY 


“ I took careful aim and fired, hitting him 
fair in the eye. With a wild howl of pain 
and fright he staggered to the shore and 
fell. 

“ At the sound of his cry the lioness, who 
was in hiding near by, sprang from the grass 
in a panic. She made but one leap and then 
she too, fell, pierced by one of my compan- 
ion’s bullets. 

“ You may be sure there was rejoicing in 
that little African village that day. 

“ We stretched the shaggy yellow pair side 
by side. The lion was much the larger, and 
his magnificent mane, which was not torn and 
matted as they often are, made him look 
yet larger. 

“ Except the mane and tuft at the end of 
the tail the body was as sleek and short- 
haired as though it had just been clipped. 


THE CAPTAIN’S LION STORY 123 


“ The lion was fully ten feet long and must 
have stood about four feet high. 

“ The lioness was somewhat (perhaps a 
foot) shorter than her mate and, of course, 
had no sign of a mane. 

u We looked all the next day for the cubs, 
but we did not find them. I have been told 
that they show dark stripes like the tiger 
when very young.” 

“ And did the poor people have no more 
trouble from the lions? ” asked Phyllis, who 
had scarcely breathed through the whole 
story. 

“ Well, not from those lions,” laughed the 
captain, “ nor from any others, so long as I 
knew.” 


A TIGER TALE 


The next day, as the two men cleaned their 
guns and hunting knives, they talked quietly 
together. 

Phyllis and Jack remained all the time 
quite near, hoping to hear another tale of the 
jungle animals. 

It was not until quite late in the after- 
noon, however, that their patience was re- 
warded. Captain Trails was polishing a cer- 
tain queerlv shaped knife or dagger. 

“ Where did you get that cruel looking 
thing? ” asked the children’s father. 

“ I do not now remember where I got it,” 
replied the captain, “ but I do know well 
where I once used it. 


124 


A TIGER TALE 


125 


“ It was in India, during the wettest rainy 
season I ever saw. Through repeated soak- 
ings my gun was rendered useless. Then it 
was that this cruelly sharp knife saved my 
life and took that of a tiger.” 

“ Tell us,” breathed Phyllis excitedly. 

“ The grasses grow very tall in the jungle 
and in the sunlight show yellowish while in 
the shadows they seem much darker— dark 
brown and black. 

‘ ‘ Is it any wonder then that the tiger, with 
its striped sides of yellow and black, its ears 
of black with a touch of white, its long taper- 
ing tail ringed yellow and black, can scarcely 
be noticed if it is crouching motionless 
among the grass stems so nearly its own 
colors? 

“ I have heard old hunters declare that one 
may not notice a tiger only three lengths of 


126 


THE CAT FAMILY 


its body away, so exactly does its coloring 
blend with that of the grasses. 

“ Tigers, also, often become ‘ man-eaters 9 
and are, I believe, even more to be feared 
than the lion. Tigers are usually not quite so 
heavy as the lion and do not look nearly as 
large because of the lack of the great shaggy 
mane of the lion. 

“ It had been a season of ill luck for the 
tiger, since great floods had destroyed so 
many of the smaller animals that its food 
suppty was greatly diminished. It must have 
nearly starved,” 

“ Why didn’t it eat birds? ” asked Phyllis, 
who was practical. 

“ Because the tiger looks always for his 
food near the ground,” replied Captain Trails. 
“ He never climbs trees and generally moves 
stealthily along, his head near the ground. 


A TIGER TALE 


127 


“ As I waited for my comrades to come up 
with me, on this particular day, I sat against 
a dark tree trunk, which was so nearly the 
color of my hunting clothes that I was as 
well protected by my colors as the tiger by 
his. 

“ The tiger, however, has a very keen scent, 
and had the wind not been in the opposite 
direction I fear the coloring of my clothing 
would not have helped greatly. 

“As it was, the great fellow had no idea 
of my presence. It was a wild boar on which 
his keen eyes were fixed. 

“ He crouched low among the grasses and 
crept noiselessly closer and closer, just as 
you have often seen a cat creep up on an un- 
wary bird. When within reach of the boar he 
made a great bound, just as a cat does upon 
the bird. 


128 


THE CAT FAMILY 


“ The boar gave one squeal of terror and 
pain as the terrible jaws snapped together 
on its throat, for it is there that the tiger 
always strikes. Then, throwing the boar 
across his back, the tiger, still not seeing, 
trotted straight towards me. 

“ Knowing my gun was useless, I clutched 
my knife firmly, having but faint hope that 
it would be of much service. 

“ When the tiger was within but a few 
paces of me he caught the scent. He let go 
the boar and dropped down amid the grasses 
motionless. 

“ Being now somewhat out of sight he did 
not yet see me, but when he did he began his 
approach not straight towards me, but in 
circles, each succeeding circle smaller than 
the one before, and so, closer and closer, he 
approached me. 


A TIGER TALE 


129 


“ I remained perfectly still, waiting. 

“ At last the tiger crouched, his tail waving 
lightly as the grass tops, his ears laid flat 
against his head, his teeth bared in a snarling 
grin. 

“ He looked straight into my eyes, and, 
knowing that to show the slightest fear would 
mean my certain destruction, I looked 
straight into the tiger’s eyes. 

“ Then he sprang: but since I was watch- 
ing his slightest movement, I was able to 
jump aside and lifting this knife drive it 
with full force into the tiger’s heart. 

“ He screamed and fell over, tearing up 
bushes and grass with his great claws. 

“ The rest of the party coming in sight at 
that moment soon put an end to his terrible 
death struggles. 

“ The natives shouted with joy, for the 


130 


THE CAT FAMILY 


people of India will kill no animal no matter 
how harmful, unless absolutely forced to do 
so in self -protection. 

“ This is because their religion teaches 
that the souls of their dead live on in the 
body of some beast, bird or reptile. So, 
though they themselves kill neither tiger, 
bird, nor snake, they are not sorry when the 
white men do so. 

“ I believe that it is greatly on account of 
this that the tigers become so fearless and 
bold, and, especially during those seasons 
when game is scarce, depend almost entirely 
on the native’s cattle, goats, sheep and buffalo 
for food. 

“ Like the lion, the tiger, after having once 
gotten the taste for human flesh, is what is 
called a 1 man-eater.’ It was once believed 
that only old, broken-toothed tigers, that were 



“ 1 it IS GREATLY OX ACCOUNT OF THIS THAT THE TIGERS BECOME 

SO FEARLESS AND BOLD.’ ” 





A TIGER TALE 


131 


no longer able to fight, became man-eaters, 
but it is now known that sometimes cubs 
form this awful taste and spend their lives 
hunting for human food. 

“It is stated as a fact that single man- 
eating tigers are known to have killed more 
than a hundred men, women and children in 
less than a year.” 

“ But do the natives never defend them- 
selves? ” asked Phyllis. 

“ Oh, yes. Sometimes they dig a deep pit 
and covering it over at the top with light 
bushes, fasten there a goat or a dog, which 
by its cries of distress attracts the tiger to 
the spot. 

“ Of course the twigs break under the 
weight of the great beast and down it crashes 
into the pit from which it can in no way es- 
cape. 


132 


THE CAT FAMILY 


“ I once heard of an old man whose busi- 
ness it was to kill man-eaters. His method 
was quite simple, but not without danger. 
He had a strong wooden cage built with only 
an opening at the top through which he en- 
tered. 

“ He fastened this very securely and sat 
inside with his great knife sharp and ready. 

“ Then when the dusk came on, for, like all 
cat animals, the tiger usually hunts at night, 
the old man began a sobbing, crying noise 
which sounded like a lonely child lost in the 
jungle. 

“ Presently the tiger, longing for the 
sweet taste of blood, crept nearer, nearer, 
nearer, until it suddenly leaped with all the 
force of its great muscles against the bars of 
the cage. 

“ Now it was for just this leap that the old 


A TIGER TALE 


133 


man waited, for as the tiger stood thus 
against the cage, his fore legs raised, his great 
tawny breast was flat against the bars. 
Striking deep between the bars the knife was 
driven into the animal’s heart.” 

“ Oh-h-h— ” cried Phyllis, pushing her 
kitten from her lap. “ Oh, I don’t believe I 
like your relatives, Pussy! ” 

But pussy only rubbed her soft sides 
against Phyllis’ black stockings and purred 
contentedly, and the captain laughed in his 
gentle manner, as he lived over his old 
hunting days. 


ALL ABOUT THE CAT FAMILY 


SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY 

Mountain Lion .— Also called puma, cougar, 
panther, painter.— Found in Rocky Moun- 
tains, but seldom— almost extinct in Amer- 
ica— formerly all eastern America.^-Feeds on 
animal food caught cat fashion— rarely at- 
tacks man unless driven to it by force of 
circumstances.— From eight to ten feet in 
length.— Fur— pale yellowish-brown growing 
lighter on under body— darkest on back— tip 
of tail nearly black. 

African Lion , “ King of Beasts.”— Found 
in Africa and Southern Asia.— Feeds entirely 
on animal food— called “ man-eaters 99 when 
habit is acquired.— Lives from twenty-five to 

134 


ALL ABOUT THE CAT FAMILY 135 


forty years.— Never climbs.— Color— varies 
from tawny to very dark brown— seemingly 
dependent on surrounding colorings. 

Lion .— Sometimes as much as ten feet in 
length, including tail, which is about three 
feet.— Three and one-half to four feet in 
height— great shaggy mane causes him to ap- 
pear larger than he really is— tuft at tip of 
tail— hair on body short and close. 

Lioness . — Bears no mane — somewhat 
smaller than mate.— Cubs.— Striped when 
young— generally two cubs, one male and one 
female born at a time. 

Tiger .— Found in Asia.— Animal food- 
after having once tasted human blood is most 
terrible of “ man-eaters.”— Very like lion in 
general habits.— No mane but a whitish ruff 
around face— long “ whiskers no tail tuft. 
—Fur short and close (varying as to season 


136 


THE CAT FAMILY 


and locality)— tawny— back red-yellow, sha- 
ding to nearly white on under body— striped 
with black— ears blackish with spots of white 
—tail tapering and ringed with black.— About 
same length as lion, but standing several 
inches shorter. 


THE ELEPHANT 





f 


V 










THE ELEPHANT 


THE ELEPHANT 

Phyllis always had a winning way, and her 
eagerness for stories made her a good listener. 
The next morning, as Captain Trails sat smi- 
ling dreamily in the sun, she and her cat 
found a comfortable corner near his chair. 

“ I think I can never love Puss quite so 
well since hearing of her cruel family,” Phyl- 
lis began artfully. 

“ I feel somewhat like that myself,” said 
the captain. “ I never see a cat without re- 
membering how cruel the big cats may be.” 

“ The dog is a faithful friend,” suggested 
Phyllis. 


139 


140 


THE ELEPHANT 


“Yes,” replied the captain, “ and the ele- 
phant is another. I have ridden many, many 
miles on the back of an elephant. I once 
went with some companions on a tiger hunt 
on elephant-back/ ’ 

A contented smile hovered on Phyllis’ lips, 
for she was saying to herself: “ Here comes 
the story.” “ Did you each have an ele- 
phant? ” she asked aloud. 

“ Yes. There were three companions be- 
sides twenty-five native drivers— mahouts, 
they are called— each with an elephant, ma- 
king twenty-nine in all. 

“We were in the midst of a dense tropical 
jungle. Placing the elephants about ten 
yards apart we proceeded, gradually closing 
in a semi-circle. I was stationed at the open 
end, where we expected the tiger to be driven. 
My elephant was very restless. All elephants 


THE ELEPHANT 


141 


are restless when awaiting the advance of a 
line of ‘ beaters.’ 

“ I, too, was excited. The great beasts 
steadily advanced, their thick sides unhurt 
by the dense underbrush. Suddenly there 
was a sharp trumpet, then a low growl, fol- 
lowed by a strange noise that the elephant 
always makes when excited, which sounds 
like sharp blows on a tambourine. 

“ I knew from that sound that the ele- 
phants had scented the tiger. From the 
growl I knew that the tiger was coming my 
way. 

“ The elephants came steadily forward; 
suddenly there was a tremendous growl and 
the biggest tiger I ever saw sprang directly 
toward me as I sat on my elephant. 

“ How I managed to fire before my ele- 
phant turned I hardly know, but with a shriek 


142 


THE ELEPHANT 


the tiger fell. My bullet had pierced its 
brain. ” 

“ Was your elephant frightened? ” asked 
Phyllis. “ As I have seen them in the circus 
they seemed not in the least excitable. Jack 
and I spent all our money for peanuts. It 
was such fun to drop them into their trunks 
and watch them curl up to their mouths or 
to make them lift their trunks and open the 
great mouths while we threw the peanuts in.” 

“ The elephant is not a particularly fierce 
or brave animal,” Captain Trails replied, 
“ but he is very intelligent and can be taught 
many things. 

4 4 One of the most interesting things the 
tame ones can do is to help capture and train 
their wild jungle brothers. A tame elephant 
sometimes leads a number of wild ones into 
a stout stockade from which there is no es- 


THE ELEPHANT 


143 


cape. They follow him without thought of 
danger, like sheep after their leader, until 
they find themselves fastened into the 
6 keddah,’ as the stockade with funnel-shaped 
opening is called in India. This is the most 
usual manner of capture in that country. 

“ The stockade is generally built near the 
place w T here a herd is feeding. Sometimes in- 
stead of using other elephants as decoys, the 
herd is surrounded by a chain of ‘ beaters.’ 

“ When all is ready they begin to make a 
great noise with shouts and poundings, and 
even by building fires on the outside of the 
circle. So the huge beasts are driven on 
toward the funnel-shaped opening, which is 
to be their prison. I once heard of one hun- 
dred and thirty-six wild elephants captured 
at one time in the same keddah. 

“ There are different ways of catching ele- 


144 


THE ELEPHANT 


phants. One is to catch them asleep, fasten 
strong ropes around their legs and tie them 
securely to trees. The elephant thus taken 
is quite helpless, and his captor waits pa- 
tiently until the elephant through hunger and 
weariness of his struggles, allows himself to 
be led away into captivity. 

“ Again, a deep pit is dug and covered over 
with branch and young leaves, of which the 
elephant is most fond. Into this the unfor- 
tunate beast falls and can do nothing but 
await the coming of his captors. 

“ In Africa, where the huge beast is killed 
for the ivory, he is often disabled while asleep 
by a cruel gash just above the heel, which 
severs the tendon, making him helpless, or 
sometimes the cruel knife with one slash cuts 
off his trunk and he bleeds to death.” 

“ You said that the tame elephants help 


THE ELEPHANT 


145 


to train the wild ones? ” questioned Phyl- 
lis. 

“ Indeed they do,” replied the captain. 
“ With trunks and tusks they bully the be- 
wildered captive into his new tasks, teaching 
him to get over his terror and his anger. It 
takes great patience, both on the part of his 
tame brother and his new two-legged master, 
to teach the wild beast, but gradually he 
comes to know the meaning of the sharp 
goad, and the reward of a bundle of sweet 
sugar cane or a basket of fruit from his 
keeper, and so at last he works patiently be- 
side his tame brother and learns many 
things.” 

“ He is a big, strong, good-natured looking 
creature,” said Phyllis. 

“ He is usually good natured, though I 
could tell you of many exceptions to the rule. 


146 


THE ELEPHANT 


“ You know how the elephant looks— his 
huge, heavy body borne up on four thick legs : 
his loosely fitting and wrinkled hide; his 
broad forehead and big hanging ears; his 
small eyes, that sometimes twinkle as if he 
was thinking all the more for not being able 
to speak; his formidable tusks, which are 
simply teeth grown out, sometimes to the 
length of more than a man’s height; and his 
most peculiar feature, the long, flexible trunk 
that serves him as nose, hand and weapon, 
so powerful that with it he can catch up a 
man, so delicate that its finger-like tip can 
pick up a berry or untie a knot. The long 
tusks belong only to the male and some ele- 
phants are without this ornament. 

“ The African elephants are much larger 
than those of Asia and their ivory is of a 
better quality. These have never been 


THE ELEPHANT 


147 


trained or tamed, but have been hunted by 
the natives for the flesh for food, their hides 
for shields and other useful articles, their 
ivory for sale; and by white men for sport 
and because of the value of the ivory. 

“ The native methods are usually cruel, 
causing needless suffering, yet since they 
mean food and other useful things to them 
perhaps their savage methods are excusable. 

“ Among the cruel methods are the pit, 
and the bleeding to death, of which I have 
already told you. There is another African 
manner of hunting which is dreadful. The 
natives have an enormous dagger with a blade 
two or three feet long and very sharp on both 
edges. To this is fixed a heavy handle about 
two feet long on which is kneaded a heavy 
knob of clay weighing twelve pounds or so. 

“ With these great daggers the hunters 


148 


THE ELEPHANT 


climb up into the trees some fifteen feet. 
Other hunters drive the herd toward the 
trees by noise or fire. Alas for the poor beast 
that stops to rest beneath one of these trees! 
The weighted dagger falls, aimed to strike 
a spot just behind the shoulder. As the great 
beast rushes madly about the awful blade is 
driven deeper and deeper until he dies of his 
wounds. 

“ Elephants usually travel in herds. Every 
herd has its captain or master. I have known 
two male elephants to fight for the mastery 
of a herd. It is a mighty fight. Their great 
heads come together like battering rams, giv- 
ing forth a dull boom. 

“ Their great tusks are like double swords. 
Even the victor is often sadly torn and man- 
gled, while the other poor fellow dies from his 
wounds or wanders off alone into the forest. 


THE ELEPHANT 


149 


Sometimes hunters find valuable ivory lying 
where some unfortunate elephant was beaten 
in the fight. 

“ Sometimes an elephant seems to go mad 
and he wanders fiercely about alone, afraid 
of nothing, attacking man or beast. He is 
called a rogue elephant, and sometimes is as 
greatly feared and does as much harm as the 
man-eating tiger. Even tame elephants have 
escaped during this madness and have been 
later recaptured and tamed. 

“ European countries controlling parts of 
Africa are now protecting the elephant from 
the ruthless hunters as our game laws protect 
the elk and deer. 

“ The Asiatic elephant has, for hundreds 
of years, been a trained beast of great useful- 
ness in the southern countries of Asia. It 
has great strength, lives sometimes a hun- 


150 


THE ELEPHANT 


dred years and can be trained to do many 
important tasks well. 

“ Yet, elephants require great care, some- 
times being given immense doses of medicine. 
They eat quantities of hay and fodder, and 
drink a hogshead of water a day, and are 
very fond of sweet things. 

“ Elephants love to bathe, and sometimes 
will lie for hours almost entirely beneath the 
water, their long trunks allowing them to 
breathe without difficulty.” 

“ I wonder if I should like to ride on an 
elephant,” said Phyllis. 

“ Oh, you would like it,” laughed the cap- 
tain. “ You would sit in a costly howdah , as 
the throne-like saddle is called, with trap- 
pings of silk and gold. 

“ Natives dressed in white, with great tur- 
bans on their heads, would hold a silken um- 


THE ELEPHANT 


151 


brella to keep off the sun and wave a silken 
fan to keep away the flies.” 

Phyllis laughed delightedly, as she pictured 
herself thus. 

“ Your driver— you would call him your 
mahout , not your chauffeur— would sit on 
the elephant’s neck and guide him, mostly 
by his voice, which the elephant seems to 
usually understand, or a gentle tap on the 
head or ear will surely be sufficient, but other 
less well-behaved animals will need a sharp 
prick from the goad which the mahout car- 
ries.” 

“ I think I like my ride,” laughed Phyllis. 
“ Tell me of some of the work the elephants 
do.” 

“ Oh, I can’t tell you all! They are taught 
so many things. 

“ They are wonderful for hunting pur- 


152 


THE ELEPHANT 


poses. They are great travellers and can 
carry immense loads. 

“ They are very useful to the army in the 
transfer of luggage and artillery. In India 
they are used in the forest, piling up and 
loading the heavy teakwood. 

“ Only the Asiatic elephant, remember, has 
been trained. Some time, perhaps, his big 
African brother will become more valuable 
alive than dead. 

“ Now, you have taken a good hour of my 
time, little girl, and I shall not tell you an- 
other story to-day.” 

“ But to-morrow? ” Phyllis said, as she 
thanked him. 

“ Perhaps.” 


THE ELEPHANT’S ESCAPE 


Phyllis lay curled up in the shady ham- 
mock with a book. 

“ An immense elephant once wandered 
alone in the thickest forest in Africa,” she 
read. “ Its two white tusks were six feet 
long and of the finest ivory. Its thick, tough 
hide was loose and wrinkled, but it covered 
several hundred pounds of healthy elephant 
meat. 

“ All the afternoon he had travelled on 
without water, and now he hurried faster, 
for he was near to the great river. 

“ There he might drink his fill and swim 

and float till cool and refreshed. So, without 

thought of danger, he pushed through the 
153 


154 


THE ELEPHANT 


thick tangle of underbrush. But alas, he did 
not reach the river. He fell into a deep pit. 
He was not, as is most usual, injured by the 
fall, but he turned and rolled helplessly in 
the pit. 

“ 4 Ah! ’ he moaned, 4 why was I not more 
watchful? Now, my life will soon be over, 
for the hunters will come with their sharp, 
cruel knives and their stinging arrows. I 
must die.’ 

44 There came a sound above him, he looked 
up and trumpeted his misery. But it was 
not the black hunters that he saw. With a 
mighty whirr of wings a great eagle alighted 
on a branch above him. 

4 4 4 Oh,’ groaned the unfortunate elephant, 
4 if you could only help me! ’ 

44 The eagle looked and was sorry. 

4 4 4 I cannot lift you,’ said the eagle, 4 but I 


THE ELEPHANT’S ESCAPE 155 


can carry a message. Send now for your 
friends.’ 

“ 6 My friends, alas, are far away in the 
forest,’ said the elephant. 

“ ‘ Think again,’ urged the eagle, 4 if you 
have ever done a kindness to any one now is 
his time to return it to you. He w T ill come 
and help you out.’ 

“ The elephant thought, and then laughed 
hopelessly. 

“ ‘ I have helped no one who could now 
help me. Once the King of the Rats and his 
entire family were caught by some mischie- 
vous little black boys. They put the king into 
one earthen water jug and his family into 
another. They left them then and ran away 
to play. 

“ ‘ I happened that way at just the right 
time. I upset the water jars and set the 


156 


THE ELEPHANT 


Rat King and his family free. But what 
could they do to get an elephant out of a 
pit?’ 

44 4 1 shall tell them,’ said the eagle. 4 Who 
knows what may happen? ’ and it flew 
away. 

44 The elephant turned again in his narrow 
prison and remembered the river of cool water 
near by. He remembered, too, the black men 
and their cruel knives and arrows. 

44 A gaily-colored parrot flew by. It saw 
the elephant, stopped and spoke. 

44 4 Ah! 9 chattered the parrot, 4 you are 
the elephant who helped the Parrot Queen 
last year. She told me about it. 

44 4 Some black women put her into a 
wooden cage and hung it outside their hut. 
She was nearly frightened to death.’ 

4 4 4 Yes,’ said the elephant, 4 I came along 


THE ELEPHANT’S ESCAPE 157 


and saw her beating her beautiful wings 
against the bars of the cage. She was as 
unhappy as I am now. I broke the cage and 
she was free.’ 

“ ‘ Perhaps she can help you,’ suggested 
the parrot. 

“ ‘ What can a parrot do to help an ele- 
phant out of a pit? 9 groaned the hopeless 
captive. But the parrot was gone. 

“ There was silence in the forest. Prom 
near by came the ripple of running water. 
The leaves whispered overhead. Now and 
again the elephant trumpeted his misery. 
He only tired himself by twisting and 
turning, for the pit was deep and nar- 
row. 

“ Presently he heard a sound. It sounded 
like the patter of feet. He struggled fiercely 
in his prison. Now the black men were com- 


158 


THE ELEPHANT 


in g, running. He again listened. No, no 
black men ever made that tiny pitter-patter, 
pitter-patter. It was the King of the Rats 
and all of his people, who peered over the 
edge of the pit. 

“ ‘ I have come to help you,’ said the Rat 
King. 

“ i Oh, Rat King, I am grateful. You mean 
well, but you cannot help an elephant out of 
a pit.’ 

4 4 At that moment there was a sound as of 
a strong wind sweeping through the trees, 
and it seemed as though a cloud darkened 
the sun. 

“ It was the arrival of the Parrot Queen 
and her million subjects. 

“ 6 1 have come to help you,’ announced the 
Parrot Queen. 

“ ‘ Oh, Parrot Queen, I am grateful! You 


THE ELEPHANT’S ESCAPE 159 


mean well, but bow can you help an elephant 
out of a pit? ’ 

“ The Parrot Queen gave an order. Her 
million subjects flew at the branches break- 
ing and throwing them into the pit. 

“ The Rat King gave an order. His mil- 
lion subjects began to gnaw and scratch at 
the edge of the pit. As they worked, the 
earth rolled into the pit and on the branches 
and the earth the elephant tramped hope- 
lessly. 

“ 6 You little creatures are very kind, but 
you cannot help me! ’ he moaned. 

“ Then the million parrots flew faster, and 
the million rats nibbled faster and the ele- 
phant tramped on, and presently he found 
that he was coming up nearer and nearer to 
the top of the pit. Presently he was near 
enough to clamber clumsily out. 


160 


THE ELEPHANT 


“ The black hunters wondered much when 
they found the filled pit, but they never shot 
their sharp arrows into that elephant. His 
white tusks were never sold to the white 
traders.” 





ALL ABOUT THE ELEPHANT 


SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY 

Found in Africa and Southern Asia.— 
Feeds on vegetable food, in wild state on 
leaves of young trees, herbage of all kinds, 
wild sugar cane.— In captivity hay, fodder, 
etc., with an especial taste for sweets.— 
Lives quite often to one hundred years.— 
Body— huge, heavy— hide thick, loosely fit- 
ting, dark slate grey— legs thick, stout- 
head— large— forehead broad— ears large, 
hanging (very much larger in African ani- 
mal)— eyes small— tusks (in male only) are 
long projecting teeth— trunk serves as nose, 
hand and weapon— nature— naturally quiet, 

timid, easily frightened, avoiding danger, 
161 


162 


THE ELEPHANT 


yet at some seasons or with some animals 
exceedingly fierce, ill-natured and dangerous, 
both in wild or domestic state. 

Capable of marvellous training— Useful in 
many ways. 

Driver, called mahout , sits on neck and 
guides by voice and sharp goad. The saddle 
or box is called the howdah. 

Manner of hunting varied — by using 
other elephants as decoys into stockades— by 
“ beating ” into stockades by noise and fires 
—From elephant back with powerful rifles.— 
African natives— killing for ivory, flesh and 
hide— trap by means of pits covered with 
broken branches, etc.,— kill by bleeding, cut- 
ting sinews of leg above heel or by severing 
trunk— by dropping weighted daggers— by 
poisoned arrows. 


THE CAMEL 
























































































































•* 












- 
















































































































































THE CAMEL 


THE SHIP OP THE DESERT 

“ Would you rather ride on an elephant 
than a camel? ” asked Phyllis. 

Captain Trails chuckled quietly. 

“ Which means/’ he laughed, “ that Phyl- 
lis would like a story about the camel.” 

She laughed guiltily. 

“ Yes,” she replied, “ Phyllis would.” 

“ For speed the camel far surpasses the 
elephant,” said the captain. “ For comfort 
I think the elephant might be preferred by 
those unaccustomed to riding.” 

“ Is the camel found only in the Sahara 
Desert? ” asked Phyllis. 

“ There is a dry stretch of country reach- 
165 


166 


THE CAMEL 


in g not only across Northern Africa, but 
straight on through the center of Asia to the 
Pacific Ocean. It includes Arabia, Persia, 
Afghanistan, Turkestan and Northern China, 
and through all this dry land are many 
camels. 

“ The camel has also been taken to the 
Australian desert, where it thrives quite as 
well as in its native land. Camels do not, 
however, like the well-watered districts nor 
the crowded cities. 

“ There are two kinds of camels. Those 
with two humps and the rough, long mane 
are the larger and stronger. They are raised 
on the dreary treeless steppes of Asia. 

“ Those with one hump are the Arabian 
camels. They are usually not so large, but 
the finer ones, called dromedaries, are more 
swift than the Asiatic camel. They travel 


THE SHIP OP THE DESERT 167 


with a long, swift, even trot, not quite so fast 
as a horse can run, but for a much longer 
time. A good camel can easily travel a hun- 
dred miles a day, and I know of some that 
have travelled twelve hundred miles in five 
and a half days. 

“ These fast dromedaries, however, are 
comparatively few as are fast horses. 

“ The slower beasts that travel in great car- 
avans over the desert, loaded with all sorts 
of merchandise, make perhaps twenty-five to 
thirty-five miles a day. These beasts are 
wonderfully strong, carrying three or four 
times as much as would be a load for a horse. 
A thousand pounds is not an unusual load 
for a camel. I am told that this great load 
is possible, because the camel’s backbone is 
arched and therefore stronger. 

“ The camel is an ill-natured, ugly, awk- 


168 


THE CAMEL 


ward-looking creature, but nature seems to 
have fitted it especially for the desert. 

“ Its small head is held aloft by a neck so 
long that it can see far over the desert. This 
also gives it a long reach for whatever food 
may be in sight. 

“ Did you ever notice how its upper lip 
sticks out over the lower? That enables the 
camel to grasp its food. And you should see 
the inside of its mouth. It is like leather. 
You no longer wonder how it can eat the 
coarse, stiff desert plants full of thorns, and 
the bitter herbs and coarse fodder, which 
make up its daily fare. 

“ When it has eaten, the camel lies down 
to digest its food just as a cow does. You 
may see it placidly chewing its cud for hours. 

“ Its nostrils are large, but are strangely 
made, so that they may be closed at will 


THE SHIP OE THE DESERT 169 


against the sand driven by the great winds 
of the desert. Its ears are very small. Its 
eyes project but have thick overhanging lids. 
The feet are cushioned and divided so that it 
travels easily without sinking into the ever 
shifting sands. 

“ The hump, or two humps, if your camel 
is of the Asiatic breed, are its store of reserve 
food; for when a camel can get nothing at all 
to eat, it can live for a long time on its own 
hump, which is gradually absorbed, growing 
smaller and smaller.” 

“ That is surely wonderful,” said Phyllis. 

“ Its stomach is a regular reservoir,” said 
the captain. “ In it the camel can store up 
water to last for days, and even weeks. 

“ You see, it drinks a great deal at a time 
when the supply is sufficient, and from its 
stomach are little bag-like openings. These 


170 


THE CAMEL 


hold the water in reserve and keep the body 
moist and the animal comfortable for a long 
time. 

“ Travellers, dying of thirst in the desert, 
have been known to secure water to save 
their lives by killing a camel and taking from 
its stomach these little bags of water. 

“ I remember very well my first trip into 
the desert. On account of wandering robber 
bands we were advised to join a caravan, 
where the greater numbers would mean 
safety. 

“ Accordingly I, with a friend who was to 
accompany me, was ready for an early start. 
We were delayed, however, until all the pack 
camels were loaded. This is no small task. 
The camel is always an ill-natured beast, 
biting and screaming, and at such a time 
seems to know of the hardships before it. 


THE SHIP OP THE DESERT 171 


66 The Arabs, however, were very skilful, 
and having the great pack-saddles all ready, 
they, by strange Arabic cries and free use of 
the whips, forced the great awkward, snarl- 
ing beasts to kneel. 

“ Quick as a wink one Arab stood on the 
bent fore legs and held the animal’s nose so 
tightly that it was nearly suffocated, while 
other Arabs as quickly adjusted the pack. 
So, one by one, the caravan prepared to start. 

“ At last we prepared to mount our drom- 
edaries. This is a very uncertain perform- 
ance with the beginner, for the camel is far 
from graceful in kneeling and rising and 
many a beginner has been spilled out of the 
saddle on to the ground or the camel’s neck. 

“ The camel rises to its fore knees with a 
jerk, throwing the rider backward, and then, 
before the rider can recover, the long hind 


172 


J 

THE CAMEL 

legs straighten like a spring and the rider is 
hurled forward often out of the saddle. If 
he remains, with one more jerk the camel 
straightens its front legs, and lo, you are 
ready to start.” 

“ I should think the poor knees would be 
quite worn out,” said Phyllis. 

“ They are well padded by Nature,” re- 
plied the captain, “ for the camel sleeps 
kneeling.” 

“ Was your saddle like the one you used on 
the elephant? ” 

“ Yes, it was quite similar, covered and 
enclosed by curtains that could be closed at 
will against sun or sand. The Arabs, how- 
ever, did not travel in this manner, but on a 
small saddle perched on the high arch of the 
back. 

“ At last the caravan started. It was in- 


THE SHIP OP THE DESERT 173 


deed a picture; the long line of camels, trav- 
elling at a smooth, even trot, single file, across 
the yellow sands into the desert. 

“ And oh, how wonderful was the desert! 
For the whole of the first day we kept the 
red mountains to our left in sight, while to 
the right and before us yellows and browns 
stretched far. The desert, you know, is not 
level like a floor, but rather wind blown hills, 
called dunes , and rocks, and in some places 
even mountains. Here and there were the 
dry prickly desert plants. 

“ The sky at noon was a faint blue, but at 
night it was a deep, dark blue filled with 
most wonderful stars, that seemed bigger 
and brighter than any others. The sunsets 
and the dawns were glorious in crimson and 
gold. 

“ On the second day we reached our first 


174 


THE CAMEL 


oasis . Hours before our camels bad sniffed 
tbe dry hot air and seemed to smell the 
springs, and they travelled without urging 
straight ahead. 

“ We came first upon great herds of camels 
browsing on the desert plants, the baby 
camels frisking uncertainly on their long 
legs. 

“ We were told that this was a Bedouin 
village rich in camels and date-trees, and we 
were very eager to visit it. 

“ The Bedouins are Arabs who live on the 
desert. We found that they were governed 
by a chief called a sheik. 

“ He was dressed in linen shirt, wide, full 
trousers, a close-fitting fez cap, and over it 
an immense turban. For hundreds of years 
these people of the desert have bred their 
camels and conducted caravans over the dan- 


THE SHIP OF THE DESERT 175 


gers of the desert. Now, however, railroads 
are building into all parts of the country 
and I presume that some day the camel will 
lose a great part of its burdens. 

“ The oasis was a beautiful spot, with 
grass and flowers and palm-trees showing 
what the desert might become if water could 
be brought to it. 

u As we travelled on, the next day we were 
overtaken by a terrible sandstorm. The sand 
came whirling in a blinding sheet. The wise 
camels sank to their knees, stretched out their 
long necks flat on the sand, their nostrils 
closed to keep out the sand. We also 
crouched close behind some rocks, our faces 
covered and scarcely able to breathe. These 
sandstorms are very full of danger to both 
camel and men, but this one luckily did not 
last long, and we were soon able to pull our- 


176 


THE CAMEL 


selves out of the sand as in this country we 
might out of a snowdrift, and travel on. The 
air, however, seemed filled with the gritty 
dust for hours. 

“ For another thing the desert traveller 
may be grateful. The camel is never deceived 
by the mirage which has fooled so many 
travellers. This, I am told, is caused by the 
dancing heat rays over the sands, and the 
thirsty traveller thinks he sees green trees 
and blue waters, where there is only the dry 
sand.” 

“ I think I should fear the desert more 
than the sea,” said Phyllis. 

“ Yet the ‘ ship of the desert ’ has carried 
many people and great riches in safety,” re- 
plied the captain. 


THE ARAB AND HIS CAMEL 

Phyllis, curled up in her favorite corner 
with an old book of iEsop’s fables, read this 
story the next morning and wondered if she 
understood what it meant: 

“ One cold night, as an Arab sat in his tent, 
a Camel gently thrust the flap of the tent 
aside and looked in. 

“ ‘ May I put my head insider ’ said he. 
4 It is very cold outside to-night. ’ 

“ ‘ You may, and welcome,’ said the Arab, 
and the Camel at once stretched his head into 
the tent. 

“ 4 May I not warm my neck also? ’ he 
continued, in a beseeching tone. 

177 


178 


THE CAMEL 


“ i Yes, certainly/ said the Arab. 

“ Before long, the Camel, who had been 
turning his head from side to side, said 
again: ‘ I shall take but little more room if 
I place my fore legs within the tent. I can- 
not stand this way.’ 

“ ‘ You may also put your fore legs within,’ 
said the Arab, moving a little to make room, 
for the tent was small. 

“ 6 May I not stand wholly inside? ’ asked 
the Camel at last. ‘ The tent cannot be closed 
while I stand in this position.’ 

“ 4 You may,’ said the Arab. ‘ I will have 
compassion on you as well as myself. Come 
inside. ’ 

“ So the Camel came forward and crowded 
into the tent. 

“ ‘ I think,’ said the Camel, ‘ that the tent 
is too small for us. I fear we cannot both 


THE ARAB AND HIS CAMEL 179 


remain inside. You are the smaller, so it 
will be best for you to stand outside/ and be 
pushed the Arab, who made haste to get out- 
side the tent.” 


J 


ALL ABOUT THE CAMEL 

SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY 

Found in Northern Africa and Central Asia 
—adaptable only to dry lands. 

Feeds on coarse, thorny herbage of the 
desert— or (in captivity) coarse fodder. 

Body large— legs long; cushioned at knees 
—neck long, slender— teeth its weapon of 
defense— upper lip projecting— mouth lining 
very leathery— ears small— nostrils large, 
closed at will against sand-storms— feet cush- 
ioned, divided, travels easily and almost 
noiselessly— stomach contains sack-like open- 
ings reserving water to last several days — 
hump, reserve of strength when food is 
scarce — back arched making it very strong. 

Nature— surly, ill-natured. 

180 


ALL ABOUT THE CAMEL 181 


Kinds— Asiatic camel has two humps— is 
larger and stronger.— Arabian camel has one 
hump, not so large, but swifter— sometimes 
called dromedary, though this name more 
properly belongs only to the very swift mem- 
bers of the Arabian camels. 


I 



THE BEAVER 




























/ 











w>"\ 






* 













* 







































































THE BEAVER 


THE TOILERS 

It was bright moonlight of an early evening 
when Phyllis, Jack and their father trudged 
silently homeward after a long walk. They 
had returned by a new route and from very 
weariness they were speechless. 

They were passing now across some low 
swampy land between two ridges. At times 
they felt their feet sink into the moisture and 
pulled them out with that soft sucking sound. 

At a turn they came upon a low dam and 
back of the dam stretched a small pond clear 
as a mirror in the moonlight. At one side, 
where the grass was high, rose a mound, 
dome-shaped and piled over with sticks. 

185 


186 


THE BEAVER 


Phyllis’ usually bright eyes did not for the 
moment see anything peculiar in this. Her 
father and Jack however stopped noiselessly, 
and then, after all, it was she who discovered 
the “ gentleman of the pond,” as she called 
him. 

Standing quite in the edge of the water was 
a small tree and at its base sat Mr. Beaver 
propped by his tail, his fore feet grasping the 
trunk and his great gnawing teeth cutting like 
a saw through the wood. 

Breathlessly they watched, for they knew 
he was far more likely to hear than see them, 
for while the beaver’s ears are keen, he is 
rather short-sighted, and in the moonlight 
they looked much like the shrubs and rocks 
around them. 

After three or four minutes of gnawing the 
treetop began to sway. Just then there was 


THE TOILERS 


187 


a heavy slap on the water and as the working 
beaver slid into the water Phyllis discovered 
that the slap had been a warning given by 
another beaver placed as watchman for the 
worker. He watched until the treetop began 
to sway and then warned the workman of 
danger by a slap of his flat tail on the water. 

The two black bodies disappeared head 
first and though the watchers waited some 
time did not reappear. The tree swayed more 
and more, and at last fell swiftly with a crash, 
not toward the pond but in the opposite di- 
rection. Phyllis looked disappointed at 
this. 

“ But I have always heard,” she com- 
plained, after giving up hope of the beaver’s 
return, “ that they cut the tree so that it will 
fall in the direction they wish.” 

“ So have I,” answered her father, “ and 


188 


THE BEAVER 


I have heard that the beaver uses his flat tail 
as a trowel in plastering his house, that he 
manages to pukh heavy logs where he wishes 
and that he can even drive stakes to start his 
dam. None of these things are true, but the 
beaver is nevertheless a most wonderful 
animal. ” 

“ We will return here to-morrow and 
watch him,” said Phyllis eagerly. 

“ Oho! ” laughed Jack, “ that shows how 
little you know of beavers, Phyllis. You will 
not be likely to see them to-morrow, for they 
are almost never seen in the daytime. They 
work and play at night, but we can come and 
examine their home. That will be most in- 
teresting, too.” 

“ Yes,” said Phyllis, “ but I hope I’ll meet 
the beavers. I could not see quite distinctly 
to-night. Tell me how they look, father.” 


THE TOILERS 


189 


“ A broad, thick, round-shouldered fellow,” 
laughed her father. “ The beaver was built 
for heavy work but, with a rich, soft, velvety 
brown coat, he dresses like a gentleman. His 
feet are peculiar. The front ones seem almost 
like hands, suitable for grasping sticks and 
stones, for digging the soft clay and plaster- 
ing home and dams with it. In swimming, the 
front feet, with their five toes and long hooked 
claws, are folded demurely under the beaver’s 
chin. His hind feet and legs are much larger 
and the claws are connected by a web. These 
hind legs and webbed feet make him a power- 
ful swimmer. 

“ His tail is flat, bare of fur and covered 
with scales. It serves as a rudder in swim- 
ming. When diving the beaver sometimes 
gives the water a slap with this flat tail which 
serves as a danger signal to all beavers within 


190 


THE BEAVER 


hearing, whereupon each one plunges head- 
first into the water. 

“ At other times when at work this flat tail 
serves as a brace, giving the animal greater 
strength. 

“ The beaver’s head is squirrel-like with 
powerful jaws and strong chisel-like teeth in 
front for gnawing. There are two teeth in 
the front of the upper jaw with two in the 
lower meeting them so that they are espe- 
cially adapted for cutting.” 

“ I am so sorry,” laughed Phyllis, “ to have 
to give up the idea that a beaver can’t plan 
his cutting so that the tree falls in the direc- 
tion he wishes. I wonder what could 
have made so many people believe 
that.” 

“ It may have been because so many trees 
near the water bend over it and when 


THE TOILERS 


191 


cut naturally fall into it,” her father re- 
plied. 

So, as they walked on, the conversation was 
all of the beaver and his ways. Jack was in- 
terested in the trapping. 

“ I suppose they shoot them?— poor 
things,” said Phyllis. 

“ Indeed they do not,” said Jack. “ If on 
land the fur would probably be damaged by 
shooting and in water the beaver would sink 
and probably be lost. 

“ The beavers are caught in traps, set 
where they are most likely to come; some- 
times beside a poplar or willow tree, where he 
steps on it when he comes to work. Traps set 
on land however are not so successful as those 
in the water. On land the beaver has a better 
chance to fight himself loose from the trap; 
sometimes at the expense of one of his useful 


192 


THE BEAVER 


fore feet, or even one of the strong hind ones, 
which he pulls off in his struggles to free it 
from the trap.” 

“ And then does he not die? ” 

“ Not he,” said Jack. “ To be sure, he will 
always be a cripple and may not be able to 
do his full share of work after that but he 
may be quite well and happy and busy and 
useful with only three feet. 

“ Again, if the beaver is caught on land 
a lynx or fox or bear may arrive before the 
trapper, and dine on poor beaver without 
properly skinning him first. 

“ The trapper usually places his trap in the 
water near the entrance to the home, near the 
woodpile, which is the beaver’s pantry, you 
know, or along the dam where he may be at 
work. Then, when caught, the beaver cannot 
fight free of the steel-trap so easily and 


THE TOILERS 


193 


drowns in his struggle. Then, since the trap 
is securely fastened, the pelt, or skin is safe, 
for in the water the other animals will not find 
him and fastened to the trap he will not 
sink. 

“ Trappers sometimes make a small break 
in the dam and set their traps near it. The 
beavers are like the people of Holland with 
their dykes. They know that a small leak 
may do great harm and at the first sign of 
damage they rush to the mending of it with 
great skill and no thought of other danger. 
It is then that the trap is very sure to get 
them.” 

“ And then the rest,” questioned their 
father, “ frightened at their companion’s 
plight slap their tails on the water and dis- 
appear head-first—” 

“ They do nothing of the sort,” interrupted 


194 


THE BEAVER 


Jack. “ That dam must be mended or their 
families, homes and supplies will be destroyed 
and they stay right there and keep on 
working .” 

“ How cruel it is to kill them,” sighed 
Phyllis. 

“ Oho! ” teased Jack, “ but how pretty you 
looked last winter in your new beaver muff 
and scarf and bonnet.” 

a Yes, I do love the furs,” said Phyllis, 
“ they are so soft and warm and pretty. But 
those traps are cruel.” 

“ The Indians and early trappers were both 
cruel and wasteful,” said her father. “ They 
broke the dams so that all the water ran off 
and then killed every beaver in the pond. 
They set traps around their winter store of 
food and caught them every one as hunger 
drove them into the trap. 


THE TOILERS 


195 


“ In that way many New England beaver 
settlements were utterly destroyed, leaving 
fine green meadows for the farmers but noth- 
ing for the trappers, and where beavers 
were once numerous none are now to be 
found. 

“ At last, however, it was discovered that 
while beaver skins were becoming more val- 
uable they were also becoming very scarce. 
Then the sportsmen and trappers grew wiser, 
and, likewise, more kind. 

“ Now the beaver ponds and the beaver 
homes are carefully guarded from harm. In 
setting traps no woodsman would think of 
seriously damaging a dam. Each season only 
a few of the animals are trapped and the 
others are allowed to live on undisturbed. 
Since the beaver reproduces quite rapidly and 
is now left in unquestioned possession of his 


196 


THE BEAVER 


ponds they are again becoming more numer- 
ous. 

“ Do not imagine, however, that all trap- 
pers, white or Indian, have yet come to see 
that they have no right to all they can find. 
There are still selfish people in all parts of the 
world.’ ’ 

“ Why, we’re home so soon! ” exclaimed 
Phyllis, as she stumbled round the sharp cut 
that hid their cottage. “ It does not seem so 
far when one has something interesting to 
talk about.” 

“ And to-morrow,” said Jack, “ let’s go 
and investigate that beaver settlement. I 
want to see just how they do their work. 
We will probably not see the beavers, since 
they work mostly at night, but we can see 
what they have done.” 

“ Let’s get to sleep now,” advised Phyllis, 


THE TOILERS 


197 


“ or we won’t feel like walking so far to- 
morrow.” 

So, with quiet “ good nights,” they sought 
their own rooms. 




THE BEAVER SETTLEMENT 


Early the next morning they started back 
to the beaver pond. They approached care- 
fully but no beavers were in sight. 

The pond looked quite different by day- 
light. It was much larger than they had at 
first thought, covering several acres. Near 
the edge grew poplar and willow trees. 

“ Wise old beavers,” said Jack, “ they 
chose a spot where grew the food they liked 
best. But look at this tiny little stream that 
feeds the pond. A beaver could scarcely 
swim in it, it is so shallow. And yet by 
darning it up the beavers have made this pond 
deep enough so that it will not freeze to the 
bottom in winter. 


198 


THE BEAVER SETTLEMENT 199 


“ Are they not wonderful? ” 

Now they went nearer and noticed that 
there were three houses built near the edge 
of the pond back of the dam. 

“ Let us inspect the dam first,” said Jack, 
who led the way. “ See how they have 
chosen the narrowest spot possible to build 
it,” he said. “ How do you suppose they 
knew? And it is built on a firm, hard clay 
foundation. How do you suppose they knew 
that? ” 

Phyllis laughed, although she was quite as 
eager as her brother. The dam had evidently 
been built high in the middle first and gradu- 
ally the end lengthened out to its present 
width. 

The lower side of the dam seemed to be 
just a mass of sticks, brush, stones and poles, 
but on looking closer the children found that 


200 


THE BEAVER 


they were so closely woven and interwoven 
that they made a very strong foundation to 
build against. 

The upper side of the dam, the side where 
the water stood, was rather harder to inves- 
tigate. 

“ But we must know,” said Phyllis, “ a 
little mud and water won’t hurt us.” And so 
they explored a little way on the upper side. 
They found it quite different from the dry 
side, for here the whole brush barrier was 
very thickly plastered with clay so that 
scarcely a branch could be seen. 

“ By and by,” said their father, “ grass 
and trees will take root. The willows in the 
dam will sprout and grow and it will look 
as though Nature herself had made the little 
lake.” 

“ And they plastered it with clay from the 


THE BEAVER SETTLEMENT 201 


bottom, so that at the same time they were 
making the pond deeper/ ’ cried Phyllis. “ I 
wish I could have watched them building.’ ’ 

“ You saw last night how they cut down 
the trees, using their flat tails as braces and 
their chisel-like teeth as saws. A large tree 
sometimes takes several days of the beaver’s 
time. When at length it falls more work is at 
hand. 

“ The branches are gnawed off. They are 
cut into lengths that can be dragged or car- 
ried to the edge of the water. Even the trunk 
is cut into convenient lengths and gotten into 
the water. Then it is more easily handled. 
The thick pieces of log are pushed endwise 
in front of the beaver, his hind legs pushing 
sturdily through the water, while his fore legs 
guide the heavy log. 

“ The branches, however, are handled dif- 


202 


THE BEAVER 


ferently. Each beaver takes a branch in his 
teeth, swings it across his shoulders and lets 
it drag behind him in the water.” 

“ There are three houses,” said Phyllis. 
“ How many beavers do you suppose there 
are? ” 

“ Perhaps twenty-five,” replied her father, 
“ counting eight or ten to a family. There 
will be the father and mother, three or four 
of this spring’s babies and, perhaps, three or 
four year-old beavers that have not yet left 
home to set up housekeeping for themselves. 

“ The babies are born in May and along in 
June their mother leads them into the water, 
where they learn to swim as naturally as a 
human baby learns to walk. Soon they know 
how to find the sweet roots of the water lily 
and no longer depend upon milk. 

“ The baby beavers are like a happy family 


THE BEAVER SETTLEMENT 203 


of children. They romp and splash and play 
in the water. They race and roll and slide 
and fight good naturedly together. 

“ A little later they are taught to cut wood 
and carry it to the winter supply; to mend 
broken dams and dig tunnels to new fields 
for food supply. 

“ When they are grown and choose mates 
the parents go with the young couple and 
help to build the new home when they have 
chosen the location in some other part of the 
pond.” 

“ Now let’s go and look at the houses,” 
said Phyllis. “ I suppose we can’t get inside 
to call.” 

“ Not without your bathing suit,” laughed 
Jack. 

“ Why, they’re nothing in the world but 
a pile of sticks! ” cried Phyllis, disappointed 


204 


THE BEAVER 


when she was near enough to see distinctly. 
And, indeed, that is the first idea one gets of 
a beaver’s wonderful house; just a low, dome- 
shaped mound near the water’s edge covered 
with sticks. On closer inspection the children 
found the sticks to be cleverly arranged and 
filled in with turf and clay. 

“ And that is about all you will be able to 
see, my dears,” said their father, “ unless 
you tear the house to pieces.” 

“ Then you will tell us about it? ” asked 
Phyllis, seating herself on the fallen trunk of 
a tree which the beavers had cut but not yet 
carried away. 

“ As soon as the beavers’ dam is ready, 
they begin work on their homes and winter 
supplies,” her father began. “ They gnaw 
and cut and drag to the selected spot with 
almost unbelievable energy. Soon there is a 



. 

1 x 




CHAKuf i UVKVoSroN 


a c 


THEY GNAW AND CUT AND DRAG TO THE SELECTED SPOT 


) n 






' 

























































































THE BEAVER SETTLEMENT 205 


big cone-shaped wood-pile rising above the 
water with turf and grasses well filled in. 
Then up through the base of the woodpile 
they gnaw a passage and just a few inches 
above the level of the water they fashion their 
living-room. 

“ The room may be from four to six feet 
on each side, nearly square and not more than 
one and a half feet high. It is dark and there 
is only the very little air that can find its way 
in through the three feet of wood-pile above. 

“ This wonderful home so close to the water 
is nevertheless so perfectly built that it is not 
damp but snug and dry. It is also very clean, 
for the beaver is a marvel of neatness. 

“ The beds along the sides of the room are 
of dry grasses perfectly clean and fresh. 

“ In the middle of the room the beavers 
dine on the bark of the branches dragged in. 


206 


THE BEAVER 


After the bark is eaten off every bit of litter 
is removed, leaving the room in perfect order. 

“ These bare branches are not thrown away 
as useless, however. They are used either to 
strengthen the dam or the roof of the house. 
Beavers waste neither time, energy or build- 
ing material. ” 

“ You have not told us how the beavers 
enter their homes/ * said Phyllis. 

“ They enter from the water, of course. 
That is the reason they select a place where 
the water will not freeze, usually over springs. 

“ There are generally two tunnels or pas- 
sages of entrance. They are roofed over, and 
one, at any rate, is broad and has a very grad- 
ual slope, so that a beaver can easily enter 
with his dinner of birch, w T illow or poplar 
branch over his shoulder. The other passage 
may be steeper and shorter and, perhaps, not 


THE BEAVER SETTLEMENT 207 


so straight. This is the danger exit from 
which they can slide out more quickly when 
alarmed. These entrances must, of course, 
be always in open water, even in the depths 
of winter.” 

“ And the beavers’ food? ” asked Phyllis. 

“ If the beavers went to sleep for the win- 
ter like the bears and other animals, they 
could live during the summer on lily roots 
and other good things that grow in the water, 
and on the tender twigs and bark to be found 
along the shore. 

“ But the beaver does not sleep the winter 
away, and so his summer months are em- 
ployed in getting in winter stores of food. 

“ These supplies are stored on the bottom 
of the pond conveniently near the home en- 
trances. Except that they are not so high 
these might be mistaken for other houses. 


208 


THE BEAVER 


For they are simply wood-piles made up of 
the roots of water plants and the branches of 
the trees whose bark makes the best food. 
Sometimes when the food supply runs low 
they eat the woody part, too.” 

“ I have heard,” said Jack, “ that one can 
tell whether the winter will be long and se- 
vere or short and mild by the size of the 
beaver’s wood-pile.” 

“ Old trappers say the beavers surely 
know,” replied his father laughing. “ Let us 
walk around the pond now and take a look 
at the other houses. In a few years they will 
have quite a settlement here. It would be 
interesting to come back and see how they 
have added to the size of the pond and dug 
new tunnels farther back into the woods.” 

As they walked quietly along, Phyllis spied 
a soft roll of brown lying in the warm sun at 


THE BEAVER SETTLEMENT 209 


one of the places worn smooth by the beavers’ 
work of rolling wood down to the water. 

Before she was really sure of what she saw 
she stepped on a twig which snapped. It was 
such a tiny sound that she scarcely heard it 
herself, but in an instant the brown roll slid 
into the water and away. 

“ Oh-h! ” she cried. 

“ They love to lie in the sun, and usually 
select these i slides ’ where they can easily 
slip into the water if alarmed. 

“ Beavers have many enemies besides the 
trapper,” said her father. “ The bear, the 
lynx, the mountain lion and the wolverine 
consider the beaver excellent eating. 

“ The beaver, however, is a desperate 
fighter when attacked and it is not seldom 
that it is he who comes off victorious, for 
those strong claws and teeth, made for hard 


210 


THE BEAVER 


work, can be used very successfully in a bard 
fight.” 

“ I hope no enemies of any kind will dis- 
turb our beaver pond,” said Phyllis earnestly. 

“ The game laws of this state will at least 
protect it from hunters and trappers,” replied 
her father, as they turned for a last look at 
the quiet sunlit pond lying like a silver mirror 
dropped between the hills. 


ALL ABOUT THE BEAVER 


SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY 

Found— formerly all over North America 
from Mexico to the Arctic— now principally 
in forest regions of Canada and Northern 
United States. 

Appearance— body about four feet long- 
stout— broadest behind— “ hump-backed.”— 
Legs short and very strong— fore legs fitted 
for digging and plastering— five fingered with 
long strong claws— hind feet much larger, 
claws longer and united by web— only hind 
legs used in swimming— fore legs folded 
under chin when swimming. 

Tail— flat, broad, bare of fur, covered with 

scales— useful chiefly as rudder when swim- 

211 


212 


THE BEAVER 


ming— and as brace for strength when cutting 
trees— also used in giving danger signal by 
slapping hard on the water. 

Head— squirrel-like— gnawing teeth four in 
number set in the front (two above and two 
below) of the strong jaws— chisel-like— very 
sharp— fitted for cutting. 

Fur— very soft and silky— chestnut brown 
above, lighter beneath— valuable. 

Homes— sites selected in swampy land of 
clay rather than sandy or rocky foundation— 
always near sufficient food supply. 

Dams built first— highest and thickest in 
the middle and often curved up-stream to 
give greater strength— sides straight and less 
thick— built of branches, short logs, stones 
and turf cleverly interwoven to withstand 
pressure— water side thickly and smoothly 
plastered with mud taken up from the bot- 


ALL ABOUT THE BEAVER 213 


tom, thus deepening pond at same time.— 
Dam carefully watched and repaired after 
completion. 

Houses— dome-shaped piles of sticks and 
turf— entered by two open water passages.— 
Rooms four to six feet square— one and one- 
half feet high— dark— poorly ventilated, but 
very clean.— Beds— fresh dry grass on sides 
of room. 

Food— chiefly the bark of trees and roots 
of water plants— stored during summer 
at bottom of pond near house for winter 
use. 

Family— average eight to ten in a house- 
young born, three to five in May— after about 
a month eat plant food mainly— young frolic- 
some and mischievous, early taught to work 
by parents. 

When mates are chosen the parent bea- 


214 


THE BEAVER 


vers usually help to build the new house in 
some other part of the pond. 

Value— chiefly for fur, for clothing and in 
the making of hats— protected in some states 
by game laws. 


THE BISON 



THE BISON 

THE BISON 

“ Fm always sorry/’ said Jack, as lie 
turned the pages of his book, “ that I didn’t 
live in the days when the buffaloes and In- 
dians roamed this part of the country.” 

“ Not so long ago either,” said his father. 

“ It was the white settlers that drove the 
Indians farther and farther back,” said Phyl- 
lis. “ I often wonder what became of all the 
Indians that were in the country when it was 
first settled by white people.” 

“I read in my geography,” said Jack, 
“ that there never were a great many Indians, 

that there are now on the reservations nearly 

217 


218 


THE BISON 


as many as there ever were in the early days. 
I was surprised to learn this.” 

“ But are there not as many buffaloes as 
there ever were? ” said Phyllis. 

“ Alas, no,” said her father, “ and it is a 
thing for our county to be ashamed of. The 
great beasts were shot down by hundreds just 
for the mere sport. It was the coming of 
the railroads that doomed the buffalo. 

“ And let us remember to call this great, 
almost extinct animal the bison rather than 
the buffalo. It is very often called the Amer- 
ican buffalo, but the true buffalo has no 
hump on its shoulders and is found only in 
Asia and Africa. 

“ The bison is found wild in no other place 
in the world than the plains and mountains 
of North America. Since this is true it is the 
greater pity that there are so few left. 


THE BISON 


219 


“ In the beginning of our history the bison 
not only occupied the western plains in al- 
most unbelievable numbers but also the foot 
hills and forests of the Appalachian Moun- 
tains in the east and far into the Rockies in 
the west. 

“ Lewis and Clarke, on their return from 
the northwest, told of great herds. Travellers 
going west by wagons or on horseback re- 
ported the country as * one vast buffalo robe.’ 

“ One man told of driving for twenty-five 
miles near the Arkansas River through a 
great herd of bison numbering probably mil- 
lions. 

“ In 1869 the Union Pacific Railway was 
completed. True stories are told of trains 
stopped and sometimes derailed by herds of 
bison. One man tells of a train which was 
delayed three hours to allow a herd of bison 


220 


THE BISON 


to pass before it. Other stories are told of 
danger to steamboats on the Mississippi and 
Yellowstone Rivers from the buffaloes cross- 
ing before them. 

“ The completion of this first railroad di- 
vided the bison into two immense herds, one 
north of the road and the other south of 
it. 

u Soon there were no bison within many 
miles of the railroad, for every train that 
went west carried not only earnest home- 
seekers but also eager hunters, who seemed 
wild to kill these great peaceful, valuable 
beasts. 

“ They were killed by hundreds of thou- 
sands. The tongue was considered particu- 
larly good for food and often only that was 
cut out when the animal was killed. Hun- 
dreds of times not even this was done. 


THE BISON 


221 


“ Not only were the bison shot down in 
great numbers for sport— if the killing of an 
animal that never is dangerous or difficult to 
stalk can be called sport— but many were 
killed by ‘ skin hunters/ 

“ About this time it was discovered that a 
buffalo skin made an excellent warm robe in 
sleigh or carriage, and so well did the skin 
hunters do their work that through the 
i eighties 9 from New England to the Pacific 
nearly every one who drove was wrapped in 
a buffalo robe. 

“ As other railroads to the coast were fin- 
ished the southern herd was fast lost sight 
of. I, myself, who lived in Kansas at that 
time never saw a wild buffalo. 

“ I saw places on the tops of hills where 
the earth was hard and nothing grew, save 
a short fine grass called ‘ buffalo grass/ I 


222 


THE BISON 


was told that these were places where the 
buffaloes had tramped. 

“ I saw on the plains great circular hol- 
lows, and was told that these were i buffalo 
wallows,’ where the animals were fond of 
rolling on the ground and dusting themselves, 
but the animals themselves were gone— killed 
by thousands and thousands needlessly. 

“ The northern herd in Montana and the 
Dakotas held out somewhat longer, but when 
a northern railroad was opened up the same 
result followed, so that in a few years the 
only bison in the United States was a small 
one in the Yellowstone Park. 

“ These are protected by law from the guns 
of the hunters, but even the law does not 
keep them entirely safe. During the winter 
months they are quite apt to stray outside 
the park to seek a more suitable range. 


THE BISON 


223 


“ While the laws of the adjoining states 
protect the animals, still many have been 
killed by the Indians and even white hunt- 
ers. 

“ A few years ago the Government asked 
for a report from each state as to the number 
of bison both wild and in parks. 

“ So far as could be found there were only 
thirty-four wild buffalo in the whole United 
States where, less than forty years ago, there 
were billions . ” 

“ The bison must have been of great bene- 
fit to the Indians of the early times, ” said 
Phyllis. 

“ Indeed, I hardly see how the Indians 
could have lived without the bison. Its flesh 
was their principal food and from the skins 
they made all sorts of things— clothing, bed- 
ding and tents.” 


224 


THE BISON 


“ I wonder if I would like the meat,” Jack 
asked. 

“ You would not know it from beef unless 
you were told,” replied his father. “ Had it 
not been for the disgraceful waste of animal 
life we might have been eating buffalo steaks 
to-day. 

“ Lately people have begun to wake up to 
the fact that the bison is nearly an extinct 
animal, and a few men who are interested 
are raising them in great country parks. 
They thrive well in captivity and of those 
there are at least a thousand in the United 
States.” 

“ I remember somewhat how they look, but 
tell us about their appearance,” begged Phyl- 
lis. 

Her father laughingly passed to her a 
crisp ten-dollar bill. 


THE BISON 


225 


“ There is a very good photograph of one 
of the finest of the vast herd,” he said. “ He 
was shot in Montana, and the mounted skin 
may now be seen in the United States Na- 
tional Museum. 

“ The bison is about the size of our domes- 
tic cattle, but so different is he in form that 
he could not be mistaken for one of them. 

“ His shoulders are strong, heavy and 
high, forming the 6 hump.’ ” 

“ I read in my history,” said Phyllis, 
“ that Coronado, the Spaniard who, on his 
expedition from Mexico, travelled into what 
is now New Mexico and Colorado, brought 
back the first reports of the bison, which 
he called the 6 hump-backed cattle ’ of the 
plains.” 

u Yes, the country must have been covered 
with them at that time, for there were not 


226 


THE BISON 


many Indians in the west even before the 
white men came. 

“ The usual color of the bison is brown, the 
shade varying greatly in different animals 
and at different seasons. 

“ The great head and shoulders appear 
even larger than they are, because of the 
thick, shaggy, curly hair which covers them. 
The bison carries its head low, and sometimes 
its beard and hair on the fore part of the 
body reaches to the ground. 

“ During the winter, when the coat is in its 
best condition, it is so thick and warm that 
the cold and rain cannot penetrate it. I am 
told that during a storm the bison always 
face the wind instead of turning back to it, 
as other animals do. 

“ In the spring the winter coat is shed and 
it is then that the poor animal looks as though 


THE BISON 


227 


he was ready; for the ragman, for his coat 
hangs in rags and tatters, and at last his body 
is nearly bare. 

“It is then that the flies trouble him 
frightfully, and his tail, tipped with long, 
coarse hair, is switching at them continually. 

“ The horns are rather short and thick, 
curved and pointed. They do not appear 
nearly so fearful as those of the Texas cattle. 

“ Most of the calves are born in the spring, 
and their coats are as red as bricks. They 
get a new coat before winter, which is thicker 
and darker.” 

“ Perhaps we will get near the herd while 
we are in the Yellowstone National Park,” 
said Phyllis. 

“ They keep to the wilder parts of the 
range,” said her father, “so it is hardly 
likely. They are a majestic appearing ani- 


228 


THE BISON 


mal. I wish you might get a glimpse of them 
in their wild state. They never seem the 
same in captivity, though they thrive there 
wonderfully well. Now, let’s say good night, 
and to-morrow perhaps you will look up some 
of those old Indian legends about the bison.” 

“ Surely the American Indian and the 
American buffalo were acquainted long ago,” 
laughed Phyllis. 

But when Phyllis and Jack looked records 
over and over they found no stories of the 
buffalo among any of the tribes to which the 
animals must have meant food, shelter, and 
clothing. 


ALL ABOUT THE BISON 


SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY 

Formerly found in unbelievable numbers 
in the Mississippi Valley and even in the 
mountains both east and west. Now only a 
very small number wild in Yellowstone Park 
—and one larger herd of several hundred 
near Hudson Bay. 

Thrive well in captivity. 

Coronado, the Spanish explorer, brought 

first report of these “ hump-backed cattle ” 

* 

about 1541. 

About size of domestic cattle but very dif- 
ferent build.— Shoulders high, massive.— 
Head large and carried low.— Whole fore 
part of body covered with long, shaggy, curly 

229 


230 


THE BISON 


hair, which neither rain nor cold can pene- 
trate. Remainder of body covered with short 
hair. 

Color varying shades of brown. Homs 
short, thick and curved. 

Young brick-red in color— born usually in 


spring. 


THE DEER FAMILY 




















THE DEER FAMILY 

A CHANCE MEETING 

One bright morning the two children and 
their father started out for a long “ tramp.’ ’ 

The mountain air was crisp and bracing, 
and the wide views of mountains and clear 
sky most beautiful. They followed a rather 
rough path through wood and field. 

“ We’re looking for fresh adventures,” 
chattered Phyllis. “ How sorry I am that we 
must start for home to-morrow. I hate to 
leave the Rockies.” 

As no one answered she trudged on a bit 
in advance of the others until, at a turn of 
the path, she caught her breath in surprise 

233 


234 


THE DEER FAMILY 


when she looked straight into a pair of 
frightened eyes. 

In an instant the grey-brown creature was 
off like the wind, crashing through the bushes 
in great leaps, bringing all four feet down 
together with a jar. 

“ A deer! ” shouted Phyllis. 

“ A mule deer,” said her father. “ Did you 
notice its big ears? They are much larger 
than those of the deer we see at home. From 
its ears it received its name.” 

“ I noticed its white tail,” said Phyllis. 

“ Well, queerly enough it is called by the 
people who live here the 1 black-tail 
though there is only a tiny tip of black. 
There is a species of deer on the western 
coast which has the right to that name, and 
is called the 4 Columbian Black-tail ’—this is 
the mule deer. I have also heard it called 


A CHANCE MEETING 


235 


the 4 jumping deer/ You can easily guess 
why since you watched it run. 

“It is neither so graceful nor so swift as 
our Virginia deer/’ 

“ How big its horns were! ” 

“ Call them antlers, child ,— antlers are 
horns which are shed once a year . Every 
male member of the deer family has these 
antlers of solid bone, branching according to 
the particular variety to which he belongs.” 

“But what becomes of the old ones?” 
asked Phyllis. “ And how do the new ones 
come? There must be a time when they 
have no antlers. Do they fall out the way 
my teeth did? ” 

“ Well, yes,” laughed her father, “ in 
rather that way. It does seem remarkable 
that those big antlers are dropped and grow 
out in so short a time. They are usually 


236 


THE DEER FAMILY 


dropped during the latter part of February 
or March. Sometimes two or three days pass 
between the falling of the first antler and the 
second. The poor fellow looks funny going 
about with only one antler. Antlers are often 
picked up in the forest, where they have 
been shed.” 

“ And then do the new ones grow as my 
teeth did? ” queried Phyllis. 

“ Well, no, not in just the same way, for 
your teeth were hard bone when they first 
peeped through, but the deer’s antlers are 
not. 

“ During the period when the new antlers 
are growing they are soft and warm and full 
of blood. This soft state is called ‘ the vel- 
vet.’ 

“ About three weeks after the antlers are 
dropped the new ones may be seen fully 


A CHANCE MEETING 


237 


started and looking like a big brown tomato. 
While in ‘ the velvet ’ they are easily injured 
and bleed freely. 

“ They grow very rapidly, soon beginning 
to push out the branches, each after the 
fashion of his own species. Gradually the 
tips begin to harden to sharp points, then 
the whole antler shrinks and hardens, and, by 
the first of October, the deer is at his best- 
new antlers, new winter coat, full of life and 
vigor.” 

“ Does it hurt him to lose his antlers? I 
can’t see a bit of use in it. Cattle keep their 
horns. Why do the deer lose theirs? ” said 
Phyllis. 

“ Ah, but Mother Nature is always wise,” 
said her father. “ Many persons believe that 
the mule deer or the timid Virginia deer at 
home are quiet, peaceful, harmless creatures 


238 


THE DEER FAMILY 


at all times and under all conditions. This 
is far from true. 

“ The male deer of all species are really 
dangerous creatures during the first three or 
four months after the antlers are grown. 

“ With neck swelled up in anger, and with 
ears laid flat against his head and nostrils 
distended, the buck goes striding through the 
wild, fairly anxious for a fight. 

“ Remember that his antlers are sharp and 
new and he seems ready to try them on man 
or beast. He has often been known to at- 
tack a man, and, unless the man knows well 
how to defend himself, soon stabs him to 
death. 

“ I once met one coming slowly toward me, 
every step showing anger; his ears laid back, 
his lips and nose turned up, and snorting 
fiercely. I knew my danger, but remembered 


A CHANCE MEETING 


239 


what an old hunter once told me. I struck 
him hard across the nose. That is the deer’s 
tender spot. He turned and went the other 
way, and I lost no time in getting out of sight 
before he might change his mind and renew 
the attack. 

“ It is very common for male deer to fight 
together to the death of one or the other; 
indeed they will sometimes murder their own 
does or fawns. 

“ And that is where Mother Nature is wise, 
for it is just at the season when the mothers— 
called the does— are rearing their babies— 
called the fawns— that the poor father- 
called the buck— is busy with his own troubles 
—his new antlers. And troubles they surely 
are, for during the time that they are grow- 
ing the poor fellow is so weak and quiet and 
lazy that you’d scarcely know him for the 


240 


THE DEER FAMILY 


proud fellow who, a few months before, was 
ready to battle without excuse. 

“ The bucks sometimes engage in pushing- 
matches, beginning perhaps playfully. Many 
pairs of antlers have thus become locked to- 
gether, and the two animals being fastened 
together in this way starved to death. 
Locked antlers are sometimes picked up in 
the woods. 

“ The summer coat of the mule deer, as 
you noticed, is reddish. In winter it is a 
grey, which very nearly matches the rocks 
and plants among which it lives; for it is 
distinctly a western deer, found in the rough, 
hilly or mountainous country of the Rockies. 
It sometimes ascends high to mountainous 
sections. This is not like the Virginia deer, 
which seems to prefer low lands. 

“ The food of the mule deer is vegetable, 


A CHANCE MEETING 


241 


of course— leaves, tender twigs or shoots of 
trees. He also eats grass. Sometimes he 
visits a farmer’s garden and has a fine ban- 
quet. 

“ The flesh of this deer is excellent veni- 
son in the fall of the year. There is no better 
meat than venison.” 

u The captain promised to bring us some 
on his return from the mountains,” said 
Phyllis. “ I’ve never eaten any venison.” 

“ The people of this part of the country 
must have eaten much venison, if we may 
judge by the rate in which the deer are being 
killed. They were once very numerous about 
here, but they are every year growing fewer. 
It seems a shame to have them killed out of 
the country as the buffalo were. 

“ The mule deer fawns are usually born in 
twos or sometimes threes. In a few hours 


242 


THE DEER FAMILY 


after birth they are able to run beside the 
mother.” 

“ I wish we might see another,” said Phyl- 
lis. “ I’d look at him more closely now, since 
I know more about him.” 

But through the long morning walk they 
did not meet another mule deer, though they 
once caught sight of one bounding off over the 
distant rocks with his peculiar bouncing gait. 


THE EASTERN DEER 


“ Do you remember those beautiful red 
deer in the park at home? ” asked Phyllis, 
the next day. “ Let’s get some books to- 
gether Jack, and see what we can find out 
about them.” 

“ Yes,” said Jack, “ I am more interested 
in deer since yesterday’s trip.” And soon 
there was the busy sound of turning pages, 
as the two children looked over the few 
books their thoughtful mother had brought 
for them. By and by they talked it over and 
found they had learned many things about 
the eastern deer. 

“ They are called the Virginia deer,” said 
Jack, “ but it seems hardly fair to give to 
them the name Virginia when they are dis- 

243 


244 


THE DEER FAMILY 


tributed over the whole United States from 
Canada to Mexico and from the Atlantic to 
the Pacific. They are most common along the 
Atlantic coast, but there are other states 
where they are more numerous than in Vir- 
ginia. 

“ The same species of deer seems to have 
several names. It is commonly called the 
red deer on account of its summer coat, which 
is reddish-brown. Do you remember in the 
poem where Iagoo says to Hiawatha, 

“ Go, my son into the forest, 

Where the red deer herd together, 

Kill for us a famous roebuck, 

Kill for us a deer with antlers! ” 

“ This same deer is called the ‘ white tail ’ 
or, in other places, the ‘ flag-tailed ’ deer. 
The reasons for these names are also very 


THE EASTERN DEER 


245 


plain. It has a very long, bushy tail, which 
is broad at the base, and narrowing toward 
the tip. It is snowy white underneath, and 
w T hen frightened and running its tail is held 
stiffly aloft and as it runs it waves from side 
to side like a flag. 

“ The Virginia deer is a better runner 
than the mule deer,” said Jack. “ Just to 
look at its slender strong legs you would 
know it was built for speed. It is also most 
beautiful and graceful. 

“ This deer has a handsome head from 
which rise the beautiful antlers. The antlers 
of most deer point backward, but those of 
the Virginia deer rise from the forehead a 
little and then turn forward , and from this 
forward sweep rise three sharp spurs. From 
the antlers and the tail it is easy to recognize 
this species. 


246 


THE DEER FAMILY 


“ As is true of the whole deer family he 
has a very keen sense of smell/ ’ Jack con- 
tinued. “ He can smell his enemies at an 
almost unbelievable distance if the wind is 
right. Every hunter knows that the first 
thing to be considered in deer hunting is that 
the wind be right. It is impossible to get 
near him ‘ down wind/ as they call it, for at 
the first scent of danger the deer is up and 
away like the wind itself.” 

“ Did you ever notice how the deer’s ears 
are always erect? ” asked Phyllis. “ I read 
that that is the reason they hear so well. 
Their uplifted ears catch the faintest sound. 

“ Some hunters believe that the deer’s eyes 
are not so keen as his nose and ears. 

“ He sees very well, however, and it seems 
to be only the motionless objects that do not 
attract him, for he is alert at the first move- 


THE EASTERN DEER 


247 


ment of the hunter even though his quick 
ears and nose have not done their duty.” 

“ Did you know,” said Jack from his book 
again, “ that the deer belong to the same 
family as the cattle? ” 

“ Oh, no,” said Phyllis, “ cattle are so big 
and slow and so clumsy when they run. They 
are not at all alike.” 

“ The family resemblance is in the feet,” 
said Jack. “ Their graceful feet are after 
the same pattern as those of the clumsy 
ox. 

“ And their red coat,” he said, “ is only 
red for three months, and for the rest of the 
year is a lovely mottled brownish-grey.” 

“ The fawns are spotted at birth,” said 
Phyllis, “ and such tiny little things, some- 
times weighing not more than four or five 
pounds. 


248 


THE DEER FAMILY 


“ For food the Virginia deer likes all sorts 
of green things, grass, shrubs, berries. For 
dessert he’ll choose the pads and stems of the 
water-lilies just as quickly as you’d choose 
ice cream. He likes the water and is a good 
swimmer. He prefers, however, the quiet 
pool or lake to running water. Here in 
the summer he spends much time nib- 
bling at the lily-pads, cool and out of 
reach of flies and other troublesome in- 
sects.” 

“ I mean to find out more about the meth- 
ods of hunting the deer,” said Jack. “ I 
wonder why father didn’t tell us more yes- 
terday. We’ll have to ask him.” 

“ I’m going to look up Mr. Longfellow just 
now,” said Phyllis, “ and know exactly how 
Hiawatha hunted the red deer. I’ve rather 
forgotten.” 


THE EASTERN DEER 


249 


“ Good! ” said Jack. “ Read it to me, 
won’t you? ” 

And this is what Phyllis read: 

“ 6 Then Iagoo, the great boaster, 

He the marvellous story-teller, 

He the traveller and the talker, 

He the friend of old Nokomis, 

Made a bow for Hiawatha; 

From a branch of ash he made it, 

From an oak bough made the arrows, 

Tipped with flint, and winged with feathers, 
And the cord he made of deer-skin. 

Then he said to Hiawatha, 

“ Go, my son, into the forest, 

Where the red deer herd together, 

Kill for us a famous roebuck, 

Kill for us a deer with antlers ! 99 

Forth into the forest straightway 


250 


THE DEER FAMILY 


All alone walked Hiawatha 
Proudly, with his bow and arrows; 

And the birds sang round him, o’er him, 
“ Do not shoot us, Hiawatha! ” 

****** 

But he heeded not nor heard them, 

For his thoughts were with the red deer, 
On their tracks his eyes were fastened 
Leading downward to the river, 

To the ford across the river, 

And as one in slumber walked he. 

Hidden in the alder bushes, 

There he waited till the deer came, 

Till he saw two antlers lifted, 

Saw two eyes look from the thicket, 

Saw two nostrils point to windward, 

And a deer came down the pathway, 
Flecked with leafy light and shadow. 
And his heart within him fluttered, 


THE EASTERN DEER 


251 


Trembled like the leaves above him, 
Like the birch-leaf palpitated, 

As the deer came down the pathway. 

Then, upon one knee uprising, 
Hiawatha aimed an arrow; 

Scarce a twig moved with his motion, 
Scarce a leaf was stirred or rustled, 
But the wary roebuck started, 
Stamped with all his hoofs together, 
Listened with one foot uplifted, 
Leaped as if to meet the arrow; 

Ah! the singing, fatal arrow, 

Like a wasp it buzzed and stung him! 

Dead he lay there in the forest 
By the ford across the river; 

Beat his timid heart no longer. 

But the heart of Hiawatha 
Throbbed and shouted and exulted 
As he bore the red deer homeward. 


252 


THE DEER FAMILY 


And Iagoo and Nokomis, 

Hailed his coming with applauses. 

From the red deer’s hide Nokomis 
Made a cloak for Hiawatha, 

From the red deer’s flesh Nokomis 
Made a banquet in his honor. 

All the village came and feasted, 

All the guests praised Hiawatha, 

Called him Strong-Heart Soan-ge-taha! 
Called him Loon-Heart Mahn-go-Taysee! ’ 


HUNTING THE DEER 


“ Deer hunting,” answered the children’s 
father, when they questioned him about it, 
“ is the most fascinating of sports. By deer 
hunting I mean the true sportsman’s man- 
ner of stalking or still-hunting. It is a match- 
ing of senses— and the deer’s wonderfully 
keen sense of smell and hearing and sight 
require a clever sportsman’s keenest cun- 
ning.” 

“ And with their nimble legs they can soon 
get out of reach of his bullet,” said Phyllis. 

“ Indeed,” laughed her father, “it is only 
the clever huntsman who gets even within 
range of the deer. The mere shooting of the 


254 


THE DEER FAMILY 


deer is not difficult. Let me tell you some- 
thing about it. 

“ In the first place, the sportsman must 
procure his license to hunt, unless he is a resi- 
dent of the state. This license costs from 
fifteen to fifty dollars, varying in different 
states. This permits him to kill only a few 
deer, the number regulated by the game laws 
of that particular state. Some states also 
require that he be accompanied by a guide, 
who is a trained huntsman as well as an of- 
ficer whose duty it is to see that the game 
laws are kept. 

“ In this manner the wanton killing of 
deer is prevented, because otherwise they 
would be all killed out of the country like the 
buffalo, and the license tax puts a round sum 
into the state treasury each year. 

“ One autumn, when I was a young man, 


HUNTING THE DEER 255 

I took a trip into the woods of Northern 
Maine for the purpose of hunting the deer. 

“ I procured my license and hired my 
guide, who was a silent, sinewy Indian, a 
native of those woods and as clever a hunter 
as I have ever seen. 

“We travelled on foot or by canoe, which 
he paddled as only an Indian can. We 
camped beside streams, and cooked our food 
over campfires. My guide knew to perfection 
how to prepare a hemlock bed and broil a 
venison steak. 

“ The scenery was so beautiful, being for- 
est-covered hills and mountains, forest- 
fringed lakes and streams, and forest-filled 
valleys and lowlands. 

“ When I tell you that it was ‘ October’s 
bright blue weather ’ you may imagine the 
glorious colorings of that forest foliage. 


256 


THE DEER FAMILY 


“ I had never been in the deep woods be- 
fore. I soon realized how helpless I should 
have been without Tony. I had no desire to 
be lost in that great wilderness, where I 
might wander round and round and never 
find my way out, and there were miles and 
miles of just trees and trees and— then more 
trees. 

“ I began to look for deer, as every hunts- 
man wants at least a chance at one. Of 
course I knew how difficult of approach the 
deer is. 

“ Even a single hunter, stealing forward 
ever so carefully, most often sees the ‘ flag 
tail 9 waving and bounding out of gun shot. 
How much more difficult with a guide! 

“ Tony explained to me that when he came 
upon a trail or runway he would place me 
in a position in range. Then I might have 


HUNTING THE DEER 


257 


my chance. He also told me of that wonder- 
ful hearing of the deer. He said if a single 
twig was snapped or leaf rustled by me 
the game would be up and away before 
me like a flash. The deer is constantly 
alert. 

“ At length Tony found the trail and 
placed me beside it, well hidden by the foli- 
age so nearly the color of my yellow-brown 
hunting suit. I waited, like Hiawatha, ‘ till a 
deer came down the pathway.’ 

“ Gracefully, quietly, ears erect and head 
high, he came towards me. With the greatest 
caution I raised my gun. Even Tony said I 
made no sound, but the shifting of position 
caught the deer’s eye, and he was off like the 
wind before I fired the shot. 

“ On another day I had better luck, but 
it is no easy matter to stalk a deer. You 


258 


THE DEER FAMILY 


understand that stalking or still-hunting con- 
sists in the huntsman’s stealing up on the 
deer,— matching wits and keen senses. More 
often than not the deers win.” 

“ But do they never use hounds now as in 
Sir Walter Scott’s time? ” asked Jack. 

6 6 Yes, in the South they still hunt with 
horses and hounds and bugles and noise, but 
in the North still-hunting is considered the 
only method by which a true sportsman 
would take a deer. In fact, in most north- 
ern states other methods are against the 
law. 

“ ‘ Hounding ’ and ‘ jacking ’ were old 
fashions of deer hunting, but they have both 
been discredited by huntsmen as not being 
true sport. 

u In ‘ hounding ’ a place in the forest near 
a small body of water was chosen. There 


HUNTING THE DEER 


259 


near the shore men in canoes were posted to 
lie quietly in wait. Then the remainder of 
the party and the pack of hounds began 
4 beating ’ the surrounding woods with a 
great din of voice and horn. In this way the 
deer is chased to the water. He is a fear- 
less and swift swimmer, but, of course, 
has no chance against the ambushed 
hunter. 

“ A 6 jack ’ is a powerful lantern. Tony 
had one in his outfit, and one night he took 
me out ‘ jacking,’— but we did not intend to 
use our guns, and both this method and 
‘ hounding ’ are scorned as simply murder and 
not sport. 

ft I was curious, however, to see how it was 
done. I had been told that it was very ro- 
mantic and picturesque. 

“ It was a clear, starlit night, but in the 


260 


THE DEER FAMILY 


shadows, with Tony at the paddle, we moved 
along on the margin of the lake. 

“ Now, the deer often feed at night on the 
lake shores, and, as Tony instructed, I held 
the 1 jack ’ aloft in the bow while he paddled 
forward silently. 

“ There on the shore a deer was feeding. 
He lifted his head and looked into the flaring 
light, dazed, it seemed, by its brightness. He 
appeared afraid, and yet attracted by the 
light, and wonder-struck he stood. I could 
not have shot at so helpless a condition if I 
would, but in my heart I was glad that there 
are laws to prevent those who would. ” 

“ Yes,” said Jack, “ and I am glad that 
there are laws to prevent too many of these 
beautiful animals being taken even in lawful 
hunt.” 

“ It was a necessary law,” replied his 


HUNTING THE DEER 


261 


father, as he rose to leave them. Jack started 
in the direction of the library. 

“ If you find ‘ The Lady of the Lake/ I’d 
like to read it, too,” called Phyllis, guessing 
what he was after. 


THE CHASE 


The stag at eve had drank his fill, 

Where danced the moon on Monan’s rill, 
And deep his midnight lair had made 
In lone Grlenartney’s hazel shade; 

But when the sun his beacon red 
Had kindled on Benvoirlich’s head, 

The deep-mouthed bloodhound’s heavy bay 
Resounded up the rocky way, 

And faint, from farther distance borne, 
Were heard the clanging hoof and horn. 

As Chief, who hears his warder call, 

“ To arms! the foemen storm the wall,” 

The antlered monarch of the waste 

Sprung from his heathery couch in haste. 
262 


THE CHASE 


263 


But ere his fleet career he took, 

The dew-drops from his flanks he shook; 
Like crested leader proud and high 
Tossed his beamed frontlet to the sky; 

A moment gazed adown the dale, 

A moment snuffed the tainted gale, 

A moment listened to the cry, 

That thickened as the chase drew nigh; 
Then, as the headmost foes appeared, 

With one brave bound the copse he cleared, 
And stretching forward free and far, 

Sought the wild heaths of Uam-Var. 

Yelled on the view the opening pack; 

Rock, glen, and cavern paid them back. 

To many a mingled sound at once 
The awakened mountain gave response. 

A hundred dogs bayed deep and strong, 
Clattered a hundred steeds along, 


264 


THE DEER FAMILY 


Their peal the merry horns rung out. 

A hundred voices joined the shout; 
With bark and whoop and wild halloo, 
No rest Benvoirlich’s echoes knew. 

Far from the tumult fled the roe, 

Close in her covert cowered the doe, 
The falcon, from her cairn on high, 
Cast on the rout a wondering eye, 

Till, far beyond her piercing ken, 

The hurricane had swept the glen. 
Faint, and more faint its failing din 
Returned from cavern, cliff and linn, 
And silence settled, wide and still, 

On the lone wood and mighty hill. 

******* 

The noble stag was pausing now 
Upon the mountain’s southern brow, 
Where broad extended, far beneath, 
The varied realms of fair Menteith. 


THE CHASE 


265 


With anxious eye he wandered o’er 
Mountain and meadow, moss and moor, 
And pondered refuge from his toil, 

By far Lochard or Aberfoyle. 

But nearer was the copsewood grey, 

That waved and wept on Loch Achray, 
And mingled with the pine-trees blue 
On the bold cliffs of Benvenue. 

Fresh vigor with the hope returned, 

With flying foot the heath he spurned, 
Held westward with unwearied race, 

And left behind the panting chase. 

—The Lady of the Lake— Scott. 


IN YELLOWSTONE PARK 


On the day they started for home Phyllis 
was quite as happy as on the day she had 
started away. 

One thing that added to her joy was the 
fact that they were to stop over to see the 
Yellowstone National Park. 

“ Isn’t it wonderful,” said Phyllis, looking 
up from the railroad map, “ that away up 
here in the northwestern corner of Wyoming 
there is a park as large as the state of Con- 
necticut? ” 

“ Reservation is really a better name,” said 
Jack wisely. “ It’s one place in our United 
States where the animals have things pretty 

much their own way. It’s one place where 
266 


IN YELLOWSTONE PARK 267 


the sportsman cannot get a permit to shoot 
at any time. 

“ To be sure, there are many visitors to 
the Yellowstone during the summer, but from 
October until May it is closed to visitors, and 
the animals have things pretty much their 
own way.” 

“ But we’re not going to see animals,” 
said Phyllis, “ but geysers and hot springs 
and beautiful scenery.” 

“ Yes,” said Jack, “ but I am glad that 
Captain Trails is going that far with us, be- 
cause I fancy he will be more interested in 
the animals than the hot springs. In the 
Reservation there is a herd of perhaps twenty 
thousand elk and I should like to see some of 
them.” 

“ Oh, I should like to see all of them! ” 
cried Phyllis eagerly. 


268 


THE DEER FAMILY 


The captain laughed. 

They spent a number of wonderful days in 
the Yellowstone, and then one day the most 
wonderful of all. They had taken a long 
drive through the wild country and stopped 
for camp in a pine grove, with the mountains 
all around and a glorious sunset behind the 
western range. 

With the captain’s hand holding hers, 
Phyllis was looking across a green valley, 
when, as she said, her “ wish came true.” 
For there against the yellow sunset light was 
a herd of American elk. Some were quite 
near enough to be plainly seen. Many were 
at a distance. 

“ Aren’t they fine! ” said Jack, with gleam- 
ing eyes. “ They surely are the hand- 
somest of the deer family. Look at the 
magnificent antlers! Look at the great 


IN YELLOWSTONE PARK 269 


mane!. See how proudly they carry their 
heads! ” 

“ The doe are beautiful, too,” said Phyllis. 

They stood long watching the herd and ob- 
serving quietly. 

The bull elks were about as large as a 
horse They were certainly handsome, 
stately creatures, and their antlers, round, 
wide branching and beautifully formed, were 
their crowning beauty. 

In color they were a yellow-brown; head, 
neck, legs and under parts a lighter yellow- 
brown. The mane, very long, coarse, and 
thick, was dark brown. 

They were feeding quietly on grass and the 
tender leaves and branches of the trees. 

Like all the deer family, their sense of smell 
is very keen, and when their noses warned 
them of their visitors they turned and started 


270 


THE DEER FAMILY 


off, at first at a fast trot, and then a rapid 
walk until they were out of sight. 

“ Ah,” sighed the gentle little captain, “ ah, 
for the good old days when hunting was 
good! 

“ There was a time when the handsome 
American elk or wapiti was found all over 
the United States. But slowly, as the coun- 
try became settled, the elk, like the bison or 
buffalo, was pushed westward. 

“ Like the buffalo, too, they were killed in 
great numbers, so that now there are very 
few left outside the Rocky Mountains of 
United States and Canada. 

“ Even now their numbers are growing 
rapidly less, except in this Yellowstone dis- 
trict. 

“ The flesh of the elk is delicious; more 
tender than beef, and very nutritious. 


IN YELLOWSTONE PARK 271 


“ The elk are usually seen in herds, some- 
times a great number together. Like 
the deer, they shed their horns each 
spring. 

“ Just after the antlers are new and strong, 
in September, is the mating season. 

“ Like the deer again, the bull elk is much 
given to fighting at this time and his whistle 
may be heard as a sign of anger. It is 
promptly answered by another bull and the 
fight is on. The stronger elk drives away the 
weaker and gathers together the cows as 
members of his family. 

“ Hunters often imitate this whistle when 
on the trail, and almost always it brings the 
answer from the handsome fellow spoiling 
for a fight. 

“ Good sportsmen nowadays believe that 
stalking the elk is the only fair way of hunt- 


272 


THE DEER FAMILY 


in g the elk as well as the deer and they refuse 
to call him by whistle. 

“ In May the fawns are born in some 
lonely, quiet spot in the mountains, where 
their mothers keep them until they are old 
enough to go with the herd. There are one 
or two fawns at a birth, beautifully spotted 
and after a week or so very handsome and 
full of life.” 

“ What a pity that the elk are gone from 
our eastern woods,” said Phyllis. 

“ Yes. But men who are interested in such 
things are trying to put them back into some 
parts of the eastern woods and some few 
have been shipped to the Adirondacks and 
invited to make their homes there.” 

“ But there are some moose in Maine,” 
said Phyllis. “ Aren’t moose and elk about 
the same? ” 


IN YELLOWSTONE PARK 273 


“ Oh, no, indeed,” said the captain. “ The 
elk is the king of the deer family; handsome, 
stately, beautiful and graceful. The moose 
is none of those. I will tell you about him 
to-morrow.” 

“ Thank you,” said Phyllis. “ I’m awfully 


glad you came with us.” 


HOW THE DEER GOT HIS ANTLERS 1 

“ There was a time,” say the Indian story- 
tellers, “ when the rabbit meant to wear long 
branching antlers instead of the deer.” 

“ For, in the beginning,” they say, “ the 
deer had antlers no more than a rabbit. His 
head was as smooth as a doe’s.” 

“ Tell us,” beg the Indian boys, whose only 
storybook is inside the storyteller’s memory. 

“ The deer was a great runner,” the story- 
teller begins, as the Indian boys draw their 
knees up to their chins and listen “ and the 
rabbit was a great jumper. 

“ Many an evening the animals gathered 
together and talked and wondered which 
could go farther in a certain time. 

1 Adapted from Ethnological Bureau Report. 

274 


THE DEER’S ANTLERS 


275 


“ The wolf believed the deer could, because 
his legs were the longer, but the owl thought 
the rabbit could, because he was so nimble 
and made such prodigious leaps. 

“ Now, as you all know, as the owl is the 
bird of wisdom, the wolf is the beast of wis- 
dom and cunning; and, when the wise 
ones disagreed, what could the others 
do? 

“ 6 There is but one way to decide,’ said 
the ’possum from his tree. 6 Let the rabbit 
and the deer run a race and then the great 
question will be decided forever.’ 

“ 6 And what will the prize be? ’ asked the 
rabbit, his ears twitching with eagerness. 

“ Then the animals called a council, which 
lasted for seven suns, and all this time they 
talked and argued about the race and the 
prize. 


276 


THE DEER FAMILY 


“ At length it was decided that they would 
present a fine pair of antlers, carved by the 
beaver’s sharp teeth, to him who should win 
the race. 

“ The race was to be run as soon as the 
carving was done, and the beaver, urged by 
the eager watchers, worked with a will. 

“ It was but a few days till the most won- 
derful pair of antlers in the whole world lay 
ready for the victor. The race was set for 
that very afternoon. 

“ When the rabbit saw the prize his eyes 
grew very bright to wear those antlers as his 
ow r n. But when he looked at the deer’s long 
slender legs, and remembered certain runs he 
had seen the deer make through the forest, 
his heart grew sick with fear. He knew he 
could not win. 

“ Now, the antlers were placed on the 


THE DEER’S ANTLERS 


277 


ground to mark the starting point, and around 
them stood the throng of admiring animals. 

“ Suddenly the rabbit spoke: 

“ ‘ I have never travelled in this part of 
the country,’ he said. ‘ Have I your permis- 
sion to explore the bushes that I may know 
where to run? ’ 

“ 4 It is no more than fair,’ answered the 
deer, and the others gave consent. 

“ The rabbit leaped into the bushes and 
they thought no more about him until it was 
time for the race to start. The rabbit had 
not yet returned. 

“ t The rabbit is up to one of his tricks,’ 
said the possum. ‘ I do not trust him. I am 
so sure of it that I am going to look for 
him.’ 

“ In the midst of a thicket the possum 
spied the rabbit busily clearing a path to 


278 


THE DEER FAMILY 


make the race easier. He had a path nearly 
round the circuit. 

“ The possum made no sound as he turned 
about and went back to the others. He told 
them what he had discovered. 

“ Cautiously, one by one, the animals crept 
up on all sides of the rabbit, who was work- 
ing so hard and so earnestly that he was deaf 
to all that was going on about him. 

“ When the rabbit was completely sur- 
rounded the bear spoke in his roughest, 
gruffest growl: 

“ ‘ What are you doing there? ’ he roared. 
The poor rabbit was so frightened that he 
lay flat on the ground and squealed. 

“ The animals agreed that such a trickster 
had no right whatever to enter the race; and 
then gave to the deer the beautiful antlers 
which he has so proudly worn ever since. 


THE DEER’S ANTLERS 


279 


“ ‘ And since you are so fond of gnawing 
and nibbling/ they said to the rabbit, ‘ that 
you shall do forever. In winter snows and 
summer heat, nibble and gnaw at whatever 
pleases your taste. And as you lie trembling 
behind the bushes at each new sound, remem- 
ber this day when your trickery was dis- 
covered.” 

“ And the rabbit still gets his food in that 
very way,” say the black-eyed Indian boys, 
wonderingly. 

“ He still does,” replies the storyteller. 


WHY THE DEER’S TEETH ARE BLUNT 1 

“ Now, the rabbit knew that he had cheated 
and was himself to blame for what had hap- 
pened on the day they were to race for the 
antlers,” said the Indian storyteller. 

“ But the rabbit was just like some of the 
poorest sort of Indian boys, who forget to 
blame themselves for their faults but learn 
to hate the one whom they tried to injure. 

“ Every time the rabbit met the deer, car- 
rying his new antlers so proudly and grace- 
fully, yet looking at him so gently and kindly, 
he grew more angry. 

“ Every time he remembered the great 


1 Adapted from Ethnological Bureau Report. 
280 


THE DEER’S TEETH 


281 


growl of the bear, and his own squeal of 
terror he grew more angry. 

“ Every time he saw the open smiles and 
heard the jeers of the possum and the otter 
and the terrapin he grew more angry. 

“ He firmly resolved to get even with the 
deer. Day and night he thought of nothing 
else. At last he hit upon a plan. 

“ A few mornings later, the rabbit 
stretched a large grape-vine across the trail 
where the deer came down to the river. He 
grinned grimly to himself as he gnawed the 
vine nearly in two. 

“ Then he went back a short distance, 
took a good run and jumped up at the vine. 

“ He kept on running and jumping, run- 
ning and jumping, until the deer came along. 

“ ‘ What in the wide world are you do- 
ing? ’ asked the deer in wonder. 


282 


THE DEER FAMILY 


“ 4 Don’t you see? ’ asked the rabbit. 6 1 
am exercising. When I finish I shall bite the 
grape-vine through at one jump.’ 

“ 4 Ah,’ said the deer, 4 1 can scarcely be- 
lieve you’ll be able to do that. I should like 
to wait and see.’ 

“ ‘ Watch then.’ 

“ The rabbit ran back, gave a tremendous 
spring and bit through the vine where it was 
already gnawed. The deer was greatly 
puzzled. 

“ 6 1 ought to be able to do that if you are/ 
he said. 

“ They stretched another grape-vine across 
the trail. The deer ran back, as the 
rabbit had done. He made a tremendous 
spring and struck the grape-vine in the mid- 
dle. 

“ But the vine did not give way. Instead, 


THE DEER’S TEETH 283 

it flew back, and threw the deer head over 
heels. 

“ He would not give up at that, however, 
but tried again and again, until he was quite 
bruised and bleeding. But he could not bite 
the grape-vine in two. 

“ All this time the rabbit sat on his 
haunches, quietly watching and nibbling at 
a grass stem. Now and again, when the deer 
fell, his ears twitched, but it was a long time 
before he spoke. 

“ ‘ Let me see your teeth! ’ said the rabbit 
at last. 

“ The deer showed his teeth, which 
were in those days long and strong like 
the wolf’s. But they were not very 
sharp. 

“ ‘ No wonder you fail,’ said the rabbit. 
‘ Your teeth are too dull to bite anything. 


284 


THE DEER FAMILY 


Let me sharpen them up like mine. My teeth 
are as sharp as a knife.’ 

“ The deer was quite willing to have his 
teeth sharpened, for he was ashamed to have 
failed to bite the grape-vine, which seemed so 
easy for the rabbit. 

“ The rabbit found a very hard stone with 
rough edges like a file and he filed and he 
filed at the deer’s teeth until they were worn 
down almost to the gums. 

“ 6 It hurts,’ said the deer. 

“ 6 Keep quiet,’ said the rabbit. 4 Of course 
it hurts when they begin to grow sharp.’ 

“ So the deer kept quiet. 

“ ‘ Now, try again,’ said the rabbit at last, 
and he took good care to be a safe distance 
out of the way. 

“ The deer tried again but, alas, this time 
he could not bite at all. Indeed, from that 


THE DEER’S TEETH 


285 


time to this the deer’s teeth have been so 
blunt that he can chew nothing but leaves 
and grass. 

“ ‘ Now you have paid for your antlers,’ 
laughed the rabbit, as he leaped away through 
the bushes.” 


THE MOOSE 


You may be sure that the captain was not 
allowed to forget his promise about the 
moose. 

“ There are moose in Maine, Captain 
Trails? ” asked Phyllis, with a twinkle in 
her eyes. 

“ There are moose in Maine,’ ’ said the cap- 
tain, with an answering twinkle in his own 
eyes. There was a silence. 

“ Did you ever see a moose in Maine? ” 
laughed Phyllis. 

“ I once followed the trail of a Maine 

moose for three days,” said the captain. 

“ At night I camped on the trail. In the 

morning I followed on, through wet leaves 
286 


THE MOOSE 


287 


and soft snow, through low, dark, swampy 
woods, round small lakes that the moose 
swam. Once I caught a glimpse of him be- 
yond range. Twice I heard him bellow.” 
Then silence, but for the merry twinkling 
eyes. 

“ You are teasing me!” laughed Phyllis, 
“ and I refuse to get cross. Did you ever see 
a moose in Maine f ” 

“ I did,” said the captain. “ I saw that 
one— later. I have his fine antlers now.” 

“ Is there danger in moose hunting? ” 

“No, not often,— sometimes, when slightly 
wounded or angered, otherwise they are shy 
and wary, slipping off through the dark 
swampy forest lands so noiselessly that you’d 
think it wonderful. It is no easy task to trail 
a moose. 

“ He has the wonderful nose and ears be- 


288 


THE DEER FAMILY 


longing to the deer family. He travels and 
lives mostly in low, swampy ground; he 
travels at a rapid trot, going miles without 
a stop; he can swim any lake or stream, and, 
if he knows that he is being followed, he is 
very wary. But when once within range it 
takes no particular sportsmanship to shoot 
a moose.” 

“ So there are moose in Maine? ” laughed 
Phyllis. 

“ There are— many moose in Maine and 
New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Until the 
protection by the game laws the moose were 
becoming fewer and fewer, but now, under a 
license, a man is allowed to kill just one bull 
moose. The cow and calf moose are pro- 
tected at all times. 

“ Throughout Western Canada and Alaska 
there are great numbers of moose. Those of 



THE MOOSE IS A DECIDEDLY UGLY, AWKWARD - LOOKING ANI- 


MAL 


1 v> 




THE MOOSE 


289 


Alaska are said to be the largest, and their 
antlers are immense, having a spread of from 
sixty to seventy-five inches, or between five 
and six feet. 

“ The moose, you know, belongs to the flat- 
horned deer. All those which you have seen 
have had round horns, but the moose and the 
caribou (car'-ry-boo) , which is found through- 
out Canada and Alaska, are flat horned. 

“ The moose antlers are shaped like great 
fins and are not so beautiful as those of the 
elk. 

“ In fact, the moose is a decidedly ugly, 
awkward-looking animal. He is large,— 
larger than the elk,— standing six or seven 
feet high. The great body and neck are cov- 
ered with long, thick, coarse hair, varying 
from light to dark brown, those of Alaska 
being darkest. Under the throat of the bull 


290 


THE DEER FAMILY 


moose and of an occasional cow is a long strip 
of skin covered with hair, hanging sometimes 
a foot in length. This is called i the bell.’ 

“ The head of the moose is ugly. Its neck 
is so short that it cannot reach the ground to 
graze without sprawling in a most awkward 
fashion. Its upper lip is so long that in 
grazing the animal must go backward to 
keep it out of the way. This same long lip 
is most useful however in gathering the 
tender leaves and branches, as are its long 
chisel-like teeth in tearing out the bark. 

“ The moose lives mostly by browsing or 
eating twigs, tender shoots and branches of 
the forest trees among which it always lives, 
for it never frequents the plains like the elk. 

“ Sometimes it can reach the juicy tops of 
the young trees by ‘ riding them down,’ as 
bending them over by the weight of the body 


THE MOOSE 


291 


is called. It spends much time in the shallow 
water and is fond of lily stems. 

“ The moose calf is horn in May, and a 
funny creature it is, not at all like the elk, 
red, woolly, and dreadfully awkward. It is 
easily tamed and is gentle and friendly. 
Moose are quite often trained to harness, 
though they do not generally live long in cap- 
tivity, needing their wild forest life to keep 
healthy and strong. 

“ In winter the moose band together where 
food is plentiful. Then they tramp down the 
deep snows and live together like a big happy 
family. This is called by hunters ‘ yarding 
up.’ 

“ The old-time hunters and the Indians 
used to hunt the moose on snow-shoes and 
finding them in these places easily killed 
them, for the great creatures broke through 


292 


THE DEEB FAMILY 


the crust and floundered helpless in the snow. 
This was called 4 crusting/ and is no longer 
considered a right method of hunting. 

“ Another method which is being given up 
by hunters as not good sportsmanship is that 
of i calling.’ The hunter has a birch-bark 
whistle with which he imitates the call of the 
moose. The bull, hearing this, thinks he hears 
his mate calling him and answers her call by 
approaching the spot where the hunter is 
waiting. 

“ Stalking the moose is the real way of 
hunting the moose, and properly hunted he 
is the finest game in America, as he is the 
biggest member of the big deer family.” 

“ I’ll catch one and train it to draw my 
sledge when I go to Greenland to live,” 
laughed Phyllis. “ But now I’m going home 
to my eastern hills, where I may catch only 


THE MOOSE 


293 


an occasional glimpse of a Virginia deer in 
the woods, or say ‘ how de do? ’ to the elk or 
moose in a park. But I shall always remem- 
ber your stories and the wonderful things I 
have learned on this trip.” 

“ And I,” said the captain, clasping her 
hand warmly, “ shall never forget the little 
girl with eyes and ears as quick as those of 
any deer, and a scent for a story so keen that 
one never escaped her.” 

And, laughing, these two good friends said 
good-by. 


ALL ABOUT THE DEER FAMILY 


SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY 

Male — Stag or buck.— Female — Doe.— 
Young— Fawns. 

Well represented in Europe, Asia and 
North and South America. 

Feeds on vegetable food— tender shoots 
and branches, leaves, grass, lily stems, gar- 
den stuff. 

Male have antlers of solid bone, branching 
according to species.— These are shed and 
renewed each year during a period of about 
four months from March to July.— Growing 
antlers are soft, which state is called “ in 
velvet at this time the animal is weak and 
listless. 

In the autumn the antlers are fully grown 

294 


ALL ABOUT THE DEER FAMILY 295 


and hard and sharp— then the animals are 
full of strength and the males are quarrel- 
some and really dangerous.— They frequently 
fight together to the death or (not in anger) 
they engage in “ pushing matches,” during 
which the antlers become locked— in this way 
they die of thirst and starvation. 

The autumn is also the mating season.— 
Young of all deer are spotted at birth— 
usually one or two at a birth. 

In all deer scent and hearing wonderfully 
acute— hearing less keen. 

Mule Deer — also called Black Tail or 
Jumping Deer/ 

Found in Rocky Mountains— frequents 
high plateau or dry lands. 

Coat— brown in summer— grey in winter 
—tail short, white with black tip— antlers 
large, recognized by double Y in each antler. 


296 


THE DEER FAMILY 


Not graceful— runs by series of stiff-legged 
leaps— gives “ bouncing ” appearance. 

Virginia Deer — also called White Tail, 
Flag Tail and Red Deer. 

Found over entire United States— espe- 
cially eastern mountains— frequents wood- 
land. 

Coat— red-brown in summer, blue-grey in 
winter— tail rather long, pointed, white un- 
derneath-held erect when running, hence 
names. 

Most beautiful in build and very graceful 
and fast runner— legs slender— ears erect- 
very difficult of approach. 

American Elk — Rocky Mountains of 
United States and Canada.— Once over both 
mountains and plains where bison were 
found— now very few except in region of 
Yellowstone Park. 


ALL ABOUT THE DEER FAMILY 297 


Very handsome— heavy mane— beautiful 
antlers, slender legs— graceful. 

Moose — a flat-horned deer.— Male— bull.— 
Female — cow. —Young — calf. — Largest mem- 
ber of deer family. 

Found in Maine, New Brunswick and Nova 
Scotia— Western Canada and Alaska— fre- 
quents dark swampy forest lands. 

Coat— coarse long whitish-grey to brown— 
six or seven feet high— shoulders high— large 
ears— overhanging upper lip— under throat 
of male long hair-covered strip called “ bell ” 
—neck short— antlers flat— very large and 
measuring from four to five feet from tip to 
tip. 

Food— mostly “ browsing ” on young for- 
est trees.— Fond of water— excellent swim- 
mer. 

Hunting.— All deer throughout United 


298 


THE DEER FAMILY 


States protected by state game laws— license 
for non-residents required— number to be 
shot limited— to prevent killing of entire 
deer family. 

“ Stalking ” or still hunting only approved 
method of hunting in the North— in South 
hounds and horses still used. 

Disapproved methods once used are:— 
Jacking or fire-lighting— hunting at night by 
aid of torch or lantern, which blinded and 
confused the deer to helplessness. 

Hounding— or chasing deer with packs 
of hounds to water, where boats stationed 
capture the deer when helpless in the water. 

Calling moose by means of birch-bark 
whistle resembling call of mate, which the 
moose answers. 


THE END 


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BIG BROTHER 

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THE JESTER’S SWORD 


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JOEL: A BOY OF GALILEE: By Annie Fellows 

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PEGGY RAYMOND’S VACATION; Or, Friendly 

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ALMA AT HADLEY HALL 

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ALMA’S SOPHOMORE YEAR 

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THE SUNBRIDGE GIRLS AT SIX STAR 
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Any girl of any age who is fond of outdoor life will 
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FAMOUS CAVALRY LEADERS 

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FAMOUS SCOUTS 

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FAMOUS FRONTIERSMEN AND HEROES 
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A — 8 


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IN WEST POINT GRAY 

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THE SANDMAN: HIS FARM STORIES 

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Large 12mo, decorative cover, fully illustrated $1.50 
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THE SANDMAN: HIS SHIP STORIES 

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THE SANDMAN: HIS SEA STORIES 

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THE PIONEER BOYS OF THE OHIO; Or, 

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THE PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES ; 

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THE PIONEER BOYS OF THE MISSISSIPPI; 

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Telling of how the Armstrong family decides to move 
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A— 10 


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THE YOUNG SECTION-HAND; Or, The Ad- 
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THE YOUNG TRAIN MASTER. By Burton E. 

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JACK LORIMER, FRESHMAN. By Winn 
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Small quarto, cloth decorative, illustrated and deco- 
rated in colors by Adelaide Everhart $1.00 

Gabriel was a loving, patient, little French lad, who 
assisted the monks in the long ago days, when all the books 
were written and illuminated by hand, in the monasteries. 

** No works in juvenile fiction contain so many of the 
elements that stir the hearts of children and grown-ups as 
well as do the stories so admirably told by this author." 
— Louisville Daily Courier. 


A LITTLE SHEPHERD OF PROVENCE 

By Evaleen Stein. 

Cloth, 12mo, illustrated by Diantha H. Marlowe $1 . 25 
“ The story should be one of the influenceA in the life 
of every child to whom good stories can be made to 
appeal." — Public Ledger. 


THE LITTLE COUNT OF NORMANDY 

By Evaleen Stein. 

Cloth, 12mo, illustrated by John Goss . . $1.25 

“ This touching and pleasing story is told with a wealth 
of interest coupled with enlivening descriptions of the 
country where its scenes are laid and of the people there- 
of." — Wilmington Every Evening. 

ALYS-ALL-ALONE 

By Una Macdonald. 

Cloth, 12mo, illustrated $1.50 

“ This is a most delightful, well-written, heart-stirring, 
happy ending story, which will gladden the heart of many 
a reader." — Scranton Times. 


ALYS IN HAPPYLAND. A Sequel to “ Alys-All 

Alone." By Una Macdonald. 

Cloth, 12mo, illustrated $1.50 

"The book is written with that taste and charm that 
prepare younger readers for the appreciation of good litera- 
ture when they are older." — Chicago Tribune. 

A — 12 


BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 


THE 

Little Cousin Series 

(trade mark) 

Each volume illustrated with six or more full page plates in 
tint. Cloth, i2mo, with decorative cover, 
per volume, 60 cents 

LIST OF TITLES 
By Mary Hazelton Wade, Mary F. 
Nixon-Roulet, Blanche McManus, 
Clara V. Winlow, Florence E. 
Mendel and Others 

Our Little African Cousin Our Little Hungarian Cousin 
Our Little Alaskan Cousin Our Little Indian Cousin 
Our Little Arabian Cousin Our Little Irish Cousin 
Our Little Argentine Cousin Our Little Italian Cousin 
Our Little Armenian Cousin Our Little Japanese Cousin 
Our Little Australian Cousin Our Little Jewish Cousin 
Our Little Austrian Cousin Our Little Korean Cousin 
Our Little Belgian Cousin Our Little Malayan (Brown) 
Our Little Bohemian Cousin Cousin 
Our Little Brazilian Cousin Our Little Mexican Cousin 
Our Little Bulgarian Cousin Our Little Norwegian Cousin 
Our Little Canadian Cousin Our Little Panama Cousin 
Our Little Chinese Cousin Our Little Persian Cousin 
Our Little Cuban Cousin Our Little Philippine Cousin 
Our Little Danish Cousin Our Little Polish Cousin 
Our Little Dutch Cousin Our Little Porto Rican Cousin 
Our Little Egyptian Cousin Our Little Portuguese Cousin 
Our Little English Cousin Our Little Russian Cousin 
Our Little Eskimo Cousin Our Little Scotch Cousin 
Our Little French Cousin Our Little Servian Cousin 
Our Little German Cousin Our Little Siamese Cousin 
Our Little Grecian Cousin Our Little Spanish Cousin 
Our Little Hawaiian Cousin Our Little Swedish Cousin 
Our Little Hindu Cousin Our Little Swiss Cousin 
Our Little Turkish Cousin 

A — 13 


L. C. PAGE <5r> COMPANY'S 


f ,l 00 191? 


THE LITTLE COUSINS OF LONG 
AGO SERIES 

The publishers have concluded that a companion series 
to “ The Little Cousin Series,” giving the every-day child 
life of ancient times will meet with approval, and like the 
other series will be welcomed by the children as well as 
by their elders. The volumes of this new series are accu- 
rate both historically and in the description of every-day 
life of the time, as well as interesting to the child. 

Small 12mo, cloth, illustrated 60c 

OUR LITTLE ROMAN COUSIN OF LONG 
AGO 

By Julia Darrow Cowles. 

OUR LITTLE ATHENIAN COUSIN OF LONG 
AGO 

By Julia Darrow Cowles. 

THE PHYLLIS SERIES 

By LENORE E. MULETS 
Each , one volume, cloth decorated, illustrated . $1.25 

PHYLLIS’ INSECT STORIES 

PHYLLIS’ FLOWER STORIES 

PHYLLIS’ BIRD STORIES 

PHYLLIS’ STORIES OF LITTLE ANIMALS 

PHYLLIS’ STORIES OF BIG ANIMALS 

PHYLLIS’ TREE STORIES 

PHYLLIS’ STORIES OF LITTLE FISHES 

“ An original idea cleverly carried out. The volumes 
afford the best kind of entertainment; and the little girl 
heroine of them all will find friends in the girls of every 
part of the country. No juveniles can be commended 
more heartily.” — St. Louis Globe-Democrat. 

A — 14 


















